A scrap metal dealer and three others will remain in custody until September 14 after a court ordered that they be held over the alleged vandalism and handling of stolen Nairobi street lights.
Paul Gitau appeared before Dagoretti Law Courts on July 28, where he was charged alongside three others who were not before the court. The accused are alleged to have vandalised street lights with some of the stolen equipment reportedly recovered at Gitau’s premises.
Gitau denied the charges, but Magistrate A.O. Casmir ordered that he remain in custody as investigations continue. The court directed that he be held until September 14, when the pre-bail report will be considered and the matter mentioned.
The magistrate described the case as a matter of “great interest”, paving the way for the accused to remain behind bars as investigators pursue further leads into the alleged theft and vandalism of the county’s street-lighting infrastructure.
The case comes as Nairobi County, in partnership with the national government, rolls out a programme to install 100,000 street lights across the city, targeting estates, the Central Business District and major highways.
Governor Johnson Sakaja said the programme is intended to improve security by lighting areas that have previously remained poorly illuminated, warning that the county would intensify efforts to protect the new infrastructure.
“Having identified various estates, CBD areas and highways that need to be lit, we are now in the process of lighting those areas. This case should serve as a warning to vandals that we shall heighten our security measures and find ways of dealing with such people,” Sakaja said.
Dagoretti South Member of County Assembly Anthony Kiragu said more than 336 street lights have reportedly been vandalised in the area, raising concern over the scale of destruction of public infrastructure.
Kiragu said the vandals dismantle the lights and sell their components to scrap metal dealers for as little as Sh100.
“We had to install light trackers, and that is how we were able to track the vandals to the dealer who has now been arraigned,” Kiragu said.
The county government has vowed to strengthen surveillance and enforcement as it moves to protect existing street lights and the new infrastructure being installed across Nairobi.
