PRESS RELEASE

MPEKETONI SENSELESS CRIMINAL ATTACK: OVERHAUL DIRECTORATE OF CRIMINAL

INVESTIGATIONS
NAIROBI, KENYA, MONDAY 16 June 16, 2014/..International Center for Policy and Conflict
(ICPC) strongly condemns the barbaric Mpeketoni attacks in the Lamu County of Kenya on
the night of Sunday 15
th
June 2014. Media reports indicate that more than 30 people are
dead, many injured and property destroyed.
It is only prudent at this early stage to desist from attributing all attacks to the Somalia
militant group Al Shaabab without thorough investigations to identify the actual
perpetrators and the motive behind the horrendous attack.
Such massive attacks without early detection only demonstrate grave criminal intelligence
gathering gap within the National Police Service (NPS). The senseless Mpeketoni attack is a
serious indictment of Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) of the National Police
Service. This attack proves that DCI lacks capacity, capability and competence to detect and
preempt crime before it happens. The Directorate of Criminal Investigations Director,
Ndegwa Muhoro must take responsibility.
The ICPC recommends that the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) popularly known
as CID of the National Police Service be overhauled, re-thought re-structured and re-
engineered into modern day operational crime fighter and law enforcement agency. It is an
agency to drive crime intelligence operations and investigations. Regular and administrative
police officers are about mundane law and order maintenance. We need more of DCI
officers involved in deep patrols and close interaction with communities. It will harness the
latest crime busting technology to ensure that, subject to robust safeguards, its intelligence
gathering and analytical capabilities match the threat posed by criminals who try to evade
detection. Through multi-agency intelligence capabilities, expertise and assets, the DCI will
comprise distinct specialized commands and in partnership with other law enforcement
agencies and the public will ensure that those who commit crime are tracked down and
brought to justice.
DCI should be a powerful, capable and effective law enforcement agency with two-way links
with local police units and other security agencies. It should house the multi-agency crime
intelligence capability ensuring criminals are subject to an effective swift prioritized level of
operational response. The new DCI will build and maintain a comprehensive security picture
based on in depth crime intelligence analysis and prioritization of the threats, harm and risks
to the country from criminals and enhanced cooperation locally and internationally.
It is time Kenyans demanded a comprehensive audit of National Police Service to determine
the actual policing personnel available in the Service, their ranks and work station, the
Service competence skills and distributions of the policing personnel across the country.
Without such data information, it is difficult to get value for the money invested in the
Service as well as guide operations and resource deployment.
Finally, we reiterate that accurate crime data gathering paired with efficient, fast
resources to analyze information and draw actionable conclusions has greater potential to
stop crimes before they start. With intelligence-led policing, national policing and law
enforcement agencies can examine data and make specific decisions based on that data to
try and prevent further crimes.
A collaborative effort is vital for successful practice predictive policing. By taking a close look
at budgets, identifying exact needs and working to change the overall culture, intelligence-
led policing is a staple of every competent law enforcement agency.
Signed
Ndungu Wainaina
Executive Director