FOUND: SECRET HOAD OF IDS FOR ARMENIANS
Story By Dominic Wabala

Daily Nation , Kenya
June 11 2006

Dramatic details emerged of the items recovered by police from the
Runda Estate house of the deported Armenian brothers.

Artur Margaryan and Artur Sargasyan had Kenyan passports as well
as appointment cards to the Kenya police force. They were ranked as
Deputy Commissioners of Police.

In addition, they had cards giving them unrestricted access to all
airports in Kenya.

Also found in their house were assault rifles and pistols with serial
numbers indicating they belonged to the presidential security unit.

They also had jackets, caps, boots and face masks similar to those
issued to the police Quick Response Unit.

As police investigations continued, two Tanzanians who had been held
following the early Friday morning raid at the home were also deported,
while a woman identified as Ms Shivana Atarakyia was released after
questioning.

Police were still pursuing leads into where the Armenians had kept
two suitcases they fled with from Jomo Kenyatta International Airport
after defying orders to have them inspected.

The hasty deportation was condemned by Cabinet ministers as details
emerged that a well-connected political activist had attempted to
persuade Police Commissioner Hussein Ali not to carry out the raid.

Other sources said the raid was delayed for about two hours – from
11 pm to 1.30 am – as a senior Cabinet minister tried to persuade
the police chief not to carry it out. Eventually, the police boss
issued the order and the gate was pulled down setting off the search,
arrest and subsequent deportation of the two brothers.

The brothers’ connections to people in government seemed to have
been confirmed beyond doubt with the recovery of certificates of
appointment as deputy commissioners of police, a post equivalent to
that of a provincial police officer.

A certificate issued to one of the brothers bore his photo but with
the names A.M. Johannes.

Another certificate of appointment issued to the brothers had earlier
been confiscated by a senior police officer. Such certificates,
which used to be given to members of the disbanded Police Reserve,
can only be issued with authority of the Commissioner of Police,
a unit commander such as the CID boss, or a provincial police chief
as laid out in the Force rules and regulations.

Two Kenyan passports – number A1031196 bearing the name Darkisyan Artak
and number A0131195 issued to Sarkissyan Arman – were also recovered
at the home. It was not immediately clear how the two could have got
their hands on the two passports which were signed by the principal
immigration officer as is required.

An airport pass – allowing Mr Margaryan full access to all areas of
the airport – was also recovered. Such passes are only issued with
the authority of the Kenya Airports Authority boss, Mr George Muhoho,
or the airport security chief. Such passes are not commonly issued
to non-KAA staff. Not even cabinet ministers have them.

Mr Muhoho was unavailable for comment but his personal assistant,
Mr Dominic Ngige, declined to explain how Mr Margaryan could have
been issued with unlimited access to the airport, saying it was a
matter to be addressed by the police.

The 13 vehicles including Toyota Harriers, a Mercedes Benz, a Subaru
Legacy, a Honda Civic, Mitsubishi Pajero, an assortment of Toyota
saloon cars and a white Volvo, remained in the compound although the
Officer Commanding Gigiri Police Division Patrick Lumumba said their
authenticity would be verified.

A Mercedes Benz with GK plates is suspected to belong to a well
connected political personality.

After conducting a search in the compound and an adjacent empty plot,
police recovered two AK-47 assault rifles with 101 rounds of ammunition
in a magazine specifically for use by the General Service Unit in
banditry and cattle rustling prone areas, and four Ceska automatic
pistols with 146 rounds of ammuntion.

They had serial numbers which closely matched those issued to the
Presidential Escort.

Police conducting the raid were taken aback when they reported their
find to their superiors on open-radio frequencies. Instead, the
policemen were given a tongue lashing when they tried to inform their
bosses of the items they had found at the Runda home. “Why should you
say such things on the radio? Don’t you have a better way of passing
such information?” one officer was reprimanded by a mystery voice.

Twenty-four orange reflective jackets, the same number of face masks
and 18 black caps, all branded with Rapid Response, similar to the
ones used in the Standard/KTN raid, were also recovered, as were two
pairs of jungle boots, three bullet-proof jackets, two combat T-shirts,
four combat jackets, two combat trousers and two scarfs.

The detectives also recovered 16 pairs of number plates including GK,
diplomatic and private motor vehicle registration numbers; three combat
Infra Red cameras, 12 Motorola communication handsets, 11 chargers,
one CCTV monitor, 10 CCTV cameras and two safety jackets.

Three computers similar to those snatched by the QRU officers during
the Standard/KTN raid were also later recovered in a Subaru car parked
in the compound.

And, as the drama of the Arturs and their two deported accomplices,
Mitri Tashci and Alecsandra Pak unfolded, detectives from the
Anti-Motor Vehicle Theft Unit (Flying Squad) and the Special Crime
Prevention Unit continued with investigations and searching the
compound yesterday.