Police kill 4 gangsters, recover weapons in Kenyan capital

Kenyan police early Tuesday killed four gangsters and recovered weapons in a residential estate in Kenyan capital Nairobi.

The city's Kayole divisional police commander Ali Nuno said three men and a woman were killed in botched robbery in Kayole residential estate at around 5:00 a.m. local time.

"There were four men and a woman, and they planned a robbery while armed with a rifle and pistols. Four of them were killed in a shootout," said Nuno. "We recovered three pistols including a homemade gun from the robbers."

The local police commander said one gunman, who police believe was an expert in handling guns, managed to escape after engaging the officers on patrol in the shootout using an AK47 rifle. The deceased are believed to have been behind a series of robbery attacks that have been reported in the area in the past months.

Cases of armed robberies targeting retail outlets in Nairobi central business district have escalated this year. According to testimonies from traders and security guards, crowded streets in downtown Nairobi are the prime target owing to their volatile nature.

Meanwhile, two Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) officers were seriously injured after the helicopter they were travelling in crash landed at Baragoni area in the coastal town of Lamu.

Military spokesman Colonel David Obonyo said the incident occurred at around 6:45 p.m. on Monday when the plane was returning from reconnaissance mission in the area. Obonyo said the chopper lost control and burst into flames after the crash. Endi