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Nairobi-A Nairobi court has ordered two Ugandans detained for another 30 days over alleged links to a syndicate recruiting East African youth to join the ISIS terror group.
Malcolm Lukwiya and Emmanuel Oneka were arrested on Wednesday, July 1, in a hideout in Kabete, Nairobi, after allegedly sneaking into the country.
Police said the two left Uganda following the killing of Sheikh Hassan Kirya, a top Muslim cleric in the country.
They are believed to be trained assassins involved in the killing of other prominent people, police said in an affidavit presented in court on Thursday.
Police said an analysis of their phone call data revealed that they have been in constant communication with two known recruiters hiding in Tanzania and Sudan.
“The suspects are connected with a syndicate that is recruiting youth in Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania who then go to Syria to join ISIS.
“They are connected with one Sebit, a Ugandan who is in Juba, South Sudan, a known recruiter who has been in constant contact with them,” Sergeant Ezekiel Luley of the Anti-Terrorism Police Unit (ATPU) told the court.
He said the suspects were also connected to one Ali, “who is in Bukoba, Tanzania, also a known ISIS agent”.
“A suspect, Rajab Ssenabulya, an Alliance Democratic Front fighter, has been arrested in connection with the killing of the Sheikh and by the records of their phone call data it is noted that they have been in constant communication,” the ATPU officer says in the affidavit.
A heavy security detail accompanied Malcom, 20, and Oneka, 24, when they were brought before Nairobi Chief Magistrate Daniel Ogembo on Thursday.
“The first suspect just arrived from Uganda to hide in Kenya in a rented house (in) Lower Kabete fearing arrest after his accomplice was arrested,” the affidavit stated.
The court heard that they were a “security risk” and a threat to the public, owing to their alleged connection to ISIS recruiters.
Mr Luley’s affidavit stated further that Oneka’s mother is a Kenyan, now living in Lebanon.
It said both suspects are believed to be involved with Uganda’s rebel group Alliance Democratic Front, which has claimed responsibility for the killings of prominent personalities in the country.
“There is an ongoing investigation in Uganda in connection (with) the killing of Sheikh Hassan,” Mr Luley said.
The officer asked the court to treat the suspects as “dangerous to the security of the State” because “the two are trained in arms to carry out assassinations as is happening in Uganda.”
He said the ATPU intended to carry out extensive investigations stretching into Uganda, Tanzania and South Sudan in order to arrest the suspect’s accomplices, who have been “aiding the two suspects.”
The suspects, who spoke with journalists, said they were “shocked” at the allegations being levelled against them.
