Director of Public Prosecutions Renson Ingonga has called for an intensified crackdown on criminal networks behind narcotics trafficking, warning that seizing drugs and arresting couriers alone will not end the multibillion-shilling trade.
Ingonga asserted that law enforcement agencies must go beyond intercepting narcotics consignments to actively pursue the financiers, coordinators, and ultimate beneficiaries driving international drug syndicates.
The DPP delivered the warning on Thursday, September 24, 2026, alongside Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen and other justice-sector officials during the public destruction of more than one tonne of methamphetamine, valued at approximately Ksh8.2 billion, at Bamburi Cement in Mombasa.
The 1,036 kg consignment was intercepted in the Indian Ocean in October 2025 during a joint multi-agency maritime operation. Ingonga stated that Kenya’s broader strategy against drug trafficking must focus on completely dismantling the underlying criminal infrastructure.
“We must move beyond arresting the courier at the end of the chain,” he said.
The DPP tasked investigators with identifying the figures who financed the drug operation, coordinated the shipment, moved the money, and ultimately profited from the illegal trade.
Ingonga noted that drug trafficking has evolved into a transnational, highly organized, technologically facilitated, and financially sophisticated trade, with syndicates taking advantage of Kenya’s coastline, strategic location, and international transport links.
The destruction of the massive methamphetamine haul followed strict legal procedures following a major trafficking case before the Shanzu Law Courts, where the drugs served as court exhibits. The operation brought together security and justice-sector bodies, including the Kenya Navy, Kenya Coast Guard Service, National Police Service, and international law enforcement partners.
Ingonga cautioned that burning the drugs does not conclude the investigation into the wider syndicate, urging authorities to follow the money trail and confiscate illicit gains.
He reaffirmed that the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions will strengthen specialized prosecution capabilities while leveraging mutual legal assistance, asset tracing, forfeiture, and financial recovery mechanisms. This structural shift allows state agencies to strike at the financial core supporting drug trafficking rather than limiting focus to low-level mules.
During the event, Interior CS Kipchumba Murkomen announced the upgrade of the Anti-Narcotics Unit into the National Anti-Narcotics Investigations Bureau. Murkomen revealed that the government has bolstered the unit by raising specialized officer strength from 200 to 405, procuring 20 operational vehicles, and enhancing intelligence, surveillance, forensic, and financial-investigation capabilities.
Ingonga described the destruction of the narcotics haul as a major step forward but stressed that the campaign against drug syndicates is far from over.
“The destruction we witness today is a milestone. But it is not the end of the fight,” Ingonga said.
He added that Kenya must gauge its success not simply by the volume of drugs seized and destroyed, but by the number of criminal networks dismantled, illicit assets recovered, convictions secured, and communities safeguarded from organized crime.
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