DCI withdraws detectives attached to KRA

DCI (Directorate of Criminal Investigations) withdraws detectives attached to KRA countrywide and the unit disbanded.

All Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) detectives attached to the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) have been recalled to Mazingira House headquarters and the unit disbanded.

The government has decided to recall all the officers assigned to KRA offices across the nation, according to a police signal from the DCI headquarters dated February 2 and signed by Julius Muthama Kitili, the Director of Personnel.

As a result, the unit was dismantled and all the detectives who had been under the command of an officer with the rank of Commissioner of Police were told to return to the DCI headquarters.

The KRA detectives have been employed to gather and provide criminal intelligence, as well as to identify and stop tax evasion, revenue leaks, and the production, sale, and importation of counterfeit goods.

Though there are fears that the move could impact the overall operations of KRA, particularly on the crackdown on counterfeits, tax evasion, and investigations into economic offenses, it is not clear when the agency is scheduled to form a special unit to undertake the duties previously performed by the DCI detectives.

According to sources, the withdrawal of the detectives is attributed to remarks by Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua in September last year when he claimed that DCI officers had, in recent years, been abusing their positions and harassing persons holding elected seats, specifically governors, which he claims impedes the officials from carrying out their constitutional mandate.

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Gachagua said the DCI does not have the powers to meddle in the affairs of state agencies, unless it is a matter of great public importance, as such the sleuths agency should refrain from laying sieges at county government offices when looking to reel in any alleged crooked officials.

“We have told DCI to go back to Kiambu Road and wait for crimes to be reported there. They have no business in government offices hovering all over and creating a toxic environment for service delivery,” he was quoted.

“We cannot have detectives in government offices because they poison the atmosphere for civil servants to deliver.”

The DP had correspondingly slammed the DCI for allegedly sending junior-ranked police officers to arrest high-ranking elected leaders, noting that this undermines the leaders’ powers and authority in the eyes of their subordinates.

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