12 Maranda High Students Arrested Over Arson Attack On Dormitory
Police have arrested 12 Form Three pupils in connection with the suspected arson attack that damaged a three-story dormitory at Maranda High School on Sunday evening.
The pupils were apprehended while attempting to flee the scene shortly after the fire, then turned over to school management and put into police custody at Bondo Police Station.
According to Bondo Sub-County Police Commandant Robert Aboki, officers recovered CCTV footage from two petrol stations in Bondo town.
The tape purportedly shows six students purchasing fuel used in the attack on the three-story Owino B dormitory.
The police alleged the plan was hatched on Saturday during a sports event where students raised Ksh2,500 and sneaked out of the school compound to purchase fuel.
They are said to have smuggled petrol into the school through a fence and hidden it in a dustbin before carrying out the attack on Sunday evening.
Police said six alleged buyers were joined by six accomplices who wore hoods and masks before lining corridors with mattresses and blankets soaked in petrol during the attack phase inside the dormitory.
They allegedly drenched the materials with petrol and set them ablaze before fleeing the scene shortly after tea break, leaving students and staff in shock and panic, according to police.
Maranda High School Dorm Fire:
CCTV Links Students to Petrol Purchase in Arson Probe
Police investigating the Maranda High School dorm fire have recovered CCTV footage allegedly showing Form Three students buying petrol before the attack.
Twelve students have been detained… pic.twitter.com/oMVFm5mlYX— Eagle News Feed (@eagle_feed) May 25, 2026
Investigators later recovered discarded masks and clothing in school toilets where suspects were believed to have hidden after the incident.
Searches continued across the compound following the fire outbreak on Sunday.
Although the fire was contained before spreading through the entire block, the school reported loss of personal items worth thousands belonging to Form Four and Grade Ten students.
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The 12 suspects are expected to be arraigned in court on Tuesday to face arson-related charges after a Bondo court granted police temporary custody for the ongoing probe into the incident.
The school administrators reveal that tension had been building between Form Three and Form Four students following the arson incident.
This prompted urgent administrative measures to prevent potential unrest within the school.
The incident prompted school administrators to send the Form Three cohort home indefinitely, following rising tensions, with fears of clashes between them and Form Four students on campus.
The incident comes just a few days after five schools in Makueni County were also involved in an arson attack.
Parents have been forced to bear the brunt of the expensive renovations of the school’s infrastructure.
12 Maranda High Students Arrested Over Arson Attack On Dormitory
