Army
Stolen British Army Rifle ‘Used To Kill Police Chief’
A rifle used to kill a police chief was stolen from British soldiers on exercise nearby, according to reports.
Kenyan chief Martin Githinji was shot multiple times in the head and neck as he pulled into his home in Nyeria county last month.
According to The Times, police said the SA80 assault rifle may have been stolen to order during a British Army training exercise in western Laikipi, by members of a gang behind a string of local murders.
An MOD Spokesperson said:
“We can confirm that a weapon was stolen from a military training area in Kenya and that local Police were informed immediately. It has since been recovered and a full investigation has been conducted to minimise the risk of it happening again.”
“The Kenya Police Service conducted a full investigation with the British Army and recovered the weapon on May 3,” police told The Times.
“In a subsequent related Kenya Police Service investigation the weapon was found to have been used in a shooting incident.”
The British Army uses the region for training as the conditions can be used to simulate war zones such as Iraq and Afghanistan.
Hundreds of Kenyans are employed to play the parts of rioting villagers, in an attempt to replicate scenarios soldiers could face abroad.
Police told The Times that they were investigating whether members of a cult gang, the Mungiki, had infiltrated the role-players.
Mr Githinji was reportedly cracking down on crime in the area and the killing has been linked to illegal brewers and a property deal.
Cover Image: A member of 2 Royal Welsh Battle Group mans an SA80 A2 in training.
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