Sh5m bhang found on farm inside forest

Sh5m bhang found on farm inside forest



Updated Sunday, August 4th 2013 at 23:17 GMT +3

A police officer burns Bhang in a forest after uprooting it

By Lydiah Nyawira and Job Weru

Nyeri, Kenya: Residents searching for a stolen cow stumbled upon a half-acre farm with bhang in the heart of the Aberdare Forest at the weekend.
About 30 residents of Gataragwa Village in Nyeri County were frog-marching two suspected cattle thieves when they stumbled on the bhang valued at Sh5 million.
Area chief Lawrence Ngaara said the residents had alerted him about the stolen cow and they later confronted the two suspects who confessed to having slaughtered the cow.
Aberdare forest
They frog-marched the suspects to the Aberdare Forest to confirm the confession.
“While we were searching for the cow’s hide, we came across a half-acre which was under bhang cultivation,” Mr Ngaara said.
The residents then took the suspects to Mweiga Police Station and reported the matter.
They also alerted area Administration Police and Kenya Forest Service (KFS) officers.
“The suspects were jittery about showing us this location and when we saw the plantation, we knew it was the reason they were acting suspiciously,” said Joshua Kabui, a resident of Kiambogo Village.
The administrator and area residents assisted the APs to uproot the bhang, which was later set on fire.

About a month ago, forest officers, police and the public discovered five acres of land under bhang cultivation on the western side of the Aberdares.
The narcotic drug was discovered deep inside the dense forest near Satima Peak, about 17km from the Kipipiri Aberdares gate.

The residents uprooted the bhang and burnt it.
Nobody has been arrested in connection with the drug cultivation, and police are still investigating.