KISUMU, Kenya, Jan 7 – Police in Homa Bay County have launched investigations after unknown criminals staged a daring night break-in at Mbita Sub-County Police Headquarters, escaping with computers from two key government offices in a security breach that has raised serious concern.
The incident targeted offices of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) located within Mbita Police Station.
According to a police report, the break-in occurred at an unknown time during the night, despite the police compound being guarded around the clock by armed officers.
Preliminary investigations indicate that the suspects forced their way into the DCI offices using a claw bar, where they stole one desktop computer. They then moved to the neighbouring ODPP offices, broke the door and made away with two desktop computers and a CPU processing unit.
A senior police officer in Mbita confirmed the incident and said detectives were investigating how the suspects accessed the secured premises without detection.
“This is a serious security breach, and we are treating it with the urgency it deserves. All angles are being explored, including the possibility of internal lapses,” the officer said.
The break-in shocked staff members who arrived at work in the morning to find their offices broken into and critical equipment missing.
Questions have been raised over how the criminals managed to carry out the operation inside a police station without raising alarm.
One officer from the affected offices, who spoke on condition of anonymity, expressed concern over the safety of sensitive information stored in the stolen computers.
“Our concern goes beyond the loss of equipment. Some of the data in those computers is sensitive and could compromise ongoing investigations and prosecutions,” the officer said.
In response, four police officers who were on duty at the time of the incident have been placed under interrogation as part of internal investigations. Police say the move is aimed at establishing whether negligence or collusion played a role in the break-in.
Authorities say further updates will be issued as investigations continue.
