Nakuru residents now claim that security in the area has improved since hawkers were relocated from the town. The residents said that there has been a reduction in cases of pickpocketing and robbery in the central business district which had been a major problem before. “Majority of the street kids and pickpockets posed as hawkers and stole from residents while when purchasing stuff from them,” said Jane Cherotich, a victim of theft. She said that she lost her phone twice to pickpockets who disappeared into the crowds. “You could not go after them as they are fast and often get swarmed in the crowd,” she added. Kevin Kibet, another resident, claimed that the congestion in the areas made it easier for people to mug you even in broad daylight. “In most cases they surrounded you and enclosed you in a circle and before you know it you’ve lost everything,” he added. Another resident, Elijah Muchemi, noted that the county government should now address the issue of street children who have swarmed the town. “They are the newest threat to the areas security. They are now intimidating and harassing people making it difficult to move around town. We are appealing to the children’s department to help clear these children out of the streets for our own security,” he added.

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