The officers were ambushed and killed on the spot. the-star.co.keA chief from Tiaty, Baringo has been arrested following the killing of six police officers in the county.
The officers were ambushed by suspected Pokot cattle rustlers who machine-gunned them resulting to their deaths as others were injured.
Moses Dike (Paka location) was after his arrest taken to Kabarnet police station for interrogation following the officers’ killing which took place along the Baringo-Laikipia border.
Dike is accused of sheltering the armed bandits before the police officers were attacked.
Charles Mbole, Tiaty sub county deputy county commissioner on Friday rubbished claims that the administrator had been abducted by cattle rustlers at Nginyang’, West Pokot.
“We saw him being whisked into a police vehicle and later bundled into a private car before his phone was switched off," a resident told the Star.
Area human rights activist Amos Olempaka said four other rapid deployment unit officers were admitted to hospital with gunshot wounds after the attack.
Olempaka urged the government to deploy more police officers in the area to help fight banditry.
Baringo since mid-2016 has witnessed recurrent cases of violent confrontations between cattle rustlers and police.
The attacks in the county hit the ceiling early 2017 forcing government to deploy KDF soldiers in the devolved unit to tame the rogue bandits who manly come from West Pokot, Elgeyo Marakwet and Turkana.
There are claims that some local administrators and politicians coordinate the cattle raids with the armed robbers.