Lamu County Commissioner Gilbert Kitiyo during a past media briefing. [Photo/ the-star.co.ke]
More than 10 administration police officers on Tuesday evening narrowly escaped death after the vehicle they were travelling in missed an Improvised Explosive Device (IED).Lamu County Commissioner Gilbert Kitiyo who confirmed the incident said the officers were on patrol when they were attacked by an unknown number of al-Shabaab militants.Kitiyo said the al-Shabaab militants had planted the bomb at Mambore-Mkokoni area, Lamu East near the Kiunga Kengen Power Station.Speaking to journalists on Wednesday, Kitiyo said the officers were able to detect the presence of the device on the road and they managed to evade running over it.Shortly after, heavily armed al-Shabaab militants who were hiding in the bushes close by shot at the vehicle carrying the officers and a fierce exchange of fire of about 20-munites ensued.The county commissioner confirmed that no one was injured during the incident.“The terrorists who were hiding in the bushes nearby sprayed the vehicle with bullets. Our officers responded immediately and managed to overpower the militants. They fled into the bushes,” said Kitiyo.“Luckily, all our offices escaped unhurt. It’s only the land cruiser’s windscreen which was shattered. It was towards darkness when the incident happened so we are still waiting for more details from the ground,” said Kitiyo.Linda Boni operation director Joseph Kanyiri said the militants might have dropped the explosive device while they were fleeing from security agencies who are conducting a massive hunt for al-Shabaab inside the Boni forest and nearby areas.“All our men are accounted for safely. It was an experience though. We will not relent. We have already launched a manhunt for the masterminds of the attack,” said Mr Kanyiri.