One Arrested as NACADA Cracks Down on Illicit Brew, Seizes Over 5,000 Litres in Emali
The security agencies were directed to ramp up their operations against individuals and networks involved in the illegal alcohol trade across the country.
National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and Drug Abuse (NACADA) seizes illicit alcohol in Emali. /courtesy
By Ruth Sang
The National Authority for the Campaign Against Alcohol and Drug Abuse (NACADA) confiscated just over 5,000 litres of illegal alcohol in a coordinated raid that saw one person arrested in Emali Town in Makueni County. The joint effort by law enforcement was aimed at activities of illegal alcohol production and distribution operating within a residential neighbourhood.
The raid arose from a house compound believed to contain an active illegal alcohol brewing operation masked among the residential units. During the operation, officers closed down the brewing den and found an unlicensed bar operating from within the estate, raising several public safety issues regarding residents’ exposure to harmful products.
The enforcement action came barely a day after President William Ruto had chaired a high-level security meeting at Nairobi’s State House to discuss the menace of drug and alcohol abuse as an eminent threat to national development and security. Following the high-level meeting, the security agencies were directed to ramp up their operations against individuals and networks involved in the illegal alcohol trade across the country.
In a media briefing conducted at the operation scene, NACADA Chief Executive Officer Dr Anthony Omerikwa said the authority had upped its supply suppression strategies in line with the President’s directive. He warned that the renewed strategy would not concentrate solely on apprehending offenders, but extending to their financial sponsors and confiscating property linked to the illegal trade.
Dr Omerikwa indicated that all properties and equipment used for illicit alcohol manufacture and distribution would be deemed proceeds of crime and confiscated. He explained that this was a deliberate strategy to dismantle the economic foundations of the illegal brewing syndicates.
NACADA indicated that the investigation had further revealed that the Emali operation was part of a wider, organized network engaged in counterfeit production of alcohol. The syndicate reportedly used industrial yeast and other unsafe additives to fast-track fermentation in a manner posing serious health risks to consumers. NACADA warned that such substances are harmful to health and have been associated with serious health complications and death in the past.
Dr Omerikwa asserted that NACADA was leading a much-cherished national coordinated response towards curbing the illicit business of alcohol and drug abuse with heavy intensity and expressed that the now-grave warning is toward all major players in the trade against whom impunity has long triumphed.
Dr Omerikwa said those who worked against impunity for long must now be made to account, adding that public cooperation will be among the main pillars uniting NACADA in exposing the network previously.
NACADA has called on the public to remain vigilant and continue sharing information to support ongoing enforcement. The public has also been encouraged to report any illegal brewing and drug-related activities through the Authority’s 24-hour toll-free hotline 1192 as enforcement on illicit alcohol is in high gear.
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