EACC Nabs 5 Traffic Officers For Allegedly Extorting Motorists
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) detained five police officers on Thursday after they allegedly extorted money from vehicles on the Busia-Kisumu Road near Busia Town.
The commission stated that its officers carried out the investigation after receiving accusations of widespread bribery and harassment of road users in the area.
According to the Commission, the cops were captured red-handed asking and collecting bribes from drivers, a practice that has allegedly become widespread in the region.
The suspects were apprehended and transported to the EACC Western Regional Offices in Bungoma for further investigation and interrogation.
The crackdown is similar to one in which the anti-graft agency detained four traffic police officials in August of this year on bribery suspicions.
The officers were arrested for purportedly soliciting and receiving bribes from motorists, matatu operators, and truck drivers along the Nairobi–Nyeri–Embu Highway.
Three of the officers arrested during the operation were from Makutano Traffic Base, while the fourth officer was assigned to Juja Traffic Base, both in Embu County.
The occurrences follow a wave of outcry from motorists, who have frequently complained about the unusual number of illegal ‘toll points’ set up by a section of officers to collect bribes.
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According to motorists, the bribes are frequently in the amounts of Ksh50, Ksh100, and Ksh200, and in other cases, the officials allegedly seek bigger stakes or even minor traffic violations.
A recent survey released by the EACC listed police officers among the most corrupt and unethical professionals in the country, with the police service leading at 47 per cent, followed by county officials.
“An analysis of bribe receivers by profession revealed that police officers (29.93 per cent), National Registration Bureau (19.7 per cent), medical officers (9.53 per cent), officials from the land registry (7.39 per cent), and immigration officers (5.8 per cent) were the most bribe receivers,” the report noted.
EACC Nabs 5 Traffic Officers For Allegedly Extorting Motorists
