By Dickens Wasonga in Malaba.
A Malaba chief was yesterday arrested by anti corruption police officers while allegedly receiving a bribe to help arbitrate over a land row involving a mother and her two sons.
33 year old Lawrence Ingura, who is the Kamolo location chief In Amagoro division of Teso district was in his home waiting to receive the money from one of the parties locked in the family land feud, but little did he realise that his client had tipped off the anti graft officers, who laid in wait outside his compound.
Earlier the administrator met one of the sons, who wanted to get a share of the two acre piece of land left behind by their late father, and struck a deal to offer ksh.2000 to the chief to favour his demands.
Simon Maswa fell out of favour with their mother, Teresa Opili, over who between the two brothers should inherit the land left to the widow 3 years ago.
While Maswa showed keen interest to inherit the land, his mother disowned him, saying he was not the biological son of her late husband Opili Maswa, and therefore had no right whatsoever over the family property.
Attempts by her son to get the local elders to help advance his case failed, and at this point, he chose to seek the help of the area chief, but with something up his sleeves.
While the chief was waiting for the bribe, the young man was planning behind the scenes, how to fix the poor administrator, who is paid to serve the public diligently.
The chief, who is being held by the police at Malaba police station, will tomorrow appear before a Bungoma court to face corruption charges. He has since been interdicted.
Meanwhile, the police arrested two Pakistani nationals who were found to have come into the country illegally.
The duo, who are being investigated by the police in Malaba were nubbed at Adongosi, near Kenya- Uganda border on Sunday, when they were found without entry visas.
The police identified one of the foreigners as Marjan Nek and the other one only as Madamin.
The Malaba district criminal investigations officer, Mr Teben Amos, today told the press in his office that they were yet to find anything linking the two to any terrorist group, but hastened to add that no chance could be taken, given the increased incidences of suspected terrorist gaining entrance into the country through the Busia border.
During the arrest, the two foreigners claimed they strayed into the country to pray, adding that they were not aware they had crossed over to Kenya.
Only recently, a suspected terrorist who had been nubbed by the Kenyan police, slipped away in Busia, where he was being held under unclear circumstances.
Its believed that criminals linked to terrorism activities were using the porous Kenyan borders to sneak into the country to cool their heels or possibly plot attacks without being noticed by the country’s law enforcement agencies.
ENDS