Director of Public Prosecutions Renson Ingonga CBS, OGW, has called for intensified efforts to dismantle criminal networks behind narcotics trafficking, saying drug seizures alone cannot defeat the growing threat.
Speaking today when he joined the Cabinet Secretary for Interior Kipchumba Murkomen among other justice sector actors during the destruction of over 1 tonne of narcotic drugs at an approximated street value of Ksh 8.2 Billion at Bamburi Cement in Mombasa, Mr Ingonga said Kenya must disrupt supply chains, prosecute those responsible, trace proceeds of crime and prevent illicit wealth from financing further consignments.
The DPP said narcotics trafficking was increasingly transnational, organised, technologically facilitated and financially sophisticated, with criminal networks exploiting Kenya’s geographical position, extensive coastline and international transport connections.
“ We must move beyond arresting the courier at the end of the chain,” Mr Ingonga said, stressing the need to establish who financed an operation, coordinated it, moved the money and benefited from the proceeds.
He said the destruction of the Ksh8.2 billion methamphetamine consignment marked the culmination of intelligence gathering, investigations, forensic analysis, prosecution and judicial oversight.
The consignment, weighing more than one tonne, was intercepted in October 2025 by a multi-agency maritime operation after Kenya Navy’s Operation Bahari Safi intercepted a stateless vessel in the Indian Ocean.
Six Iranian nationals were subsequently charged in connection with the consignment.
Mr Ingonga said the Shanzu Chief Magistrate’s Court had found that the prosecution established a prima facie case after calling 12 witnesses and placed the six accused persons on their defence.
The defence called three witnesses and closed its case, with the accused persons retaining their right to due process and the presumption of innocence.
The DPP said the case demonstrated the importance of converting intelligence gathered during maritime operations into lawful, credible and admissible evidence.
He commended investigators, maritime agencies, prosecutors, forensic experts, international partners and the Judiciary for working together in the fight against transnational organised crime.
Mr Ingonga specifically acknowledged the Directorate of Criminal Investigations and its Anti-Narcotics Unit, Kenya Coast Guard Service, Kenya Navy, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and the United States Department of Justice for their cooperation.
He said the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions would continue strengthening specialised prosecution, pursuing mutual legal assistance and following the money through asset tracing, forfeiture and recovery.
“The destruction we witness today is a milestone. But it is not the end of the fight,” Mr Ingonga said.
He said success should also be measured by criminal networks dismantled, illicit wealth confiscated, prosecutions concluded and communities protected from narcotics and transnational organised crime.
