Police have seized 454 kilogrammes of suspected methamphetamine, with an estimated street value of Sh3.6 billion (about $27 million), in Kwale County in a joint operation with Tanzanian authorities targeting international drug trafficking networks.
The drugs were found at Ganja La Simba village in Kinondo Location, Msambweni Sub-County, during an intelligence-led operation by the National Anti-Narcotics Bureau’s Coast Region team and other security agencies. Three suspects, two Tanzanian nationals and a Ugandan woman, were arrested at the scene. Officers also seized two vehicles and a motorcycle. The operation was carried out on the instructions of Inspector-General of Police Douglas Kanja.
The breakthrough followed the arrest in Tanzania on November 5, 2026, of Saleh Khamis, a 45-year-old Tanzanian national, who was handed over to Kenyan police at the Lunga Lunga-Horohoro border. Khamis, who is also linked to a separate seizure of about 250 kilogrammes of suspected methamphetamine and cocaine in Tanzania, led detectives first to Shirazi village in Kingwede and then to the site where the drugs were hidden.
All suspects are in custody and will be arraigned in court, while the drugs, vehicles and motorcycle are being held as exhibits. Investigators are still trying to establish the origin of the drugs and how they reached Kwale. “We are still yet to know the source and how they reached there,” said Director of Criminal Investigations Mohamed Amin.
Police believe the consignment came in through the Indian Ocean. Some sources say it was probably destined for South Africa, but this has not been confirmed. Police say the operation is ongoing and have urged the public to share information that could help fight drug trafficking.
The seizure comes as the government intensifies its war on drugs. Deputy President Kithure Kindiki recently identified illicit alcohol and drug abuse as among the biggest threats to Kenya’s future and pledged tougher laws and stepped-up operations across the country.
In September, authorities destroyed more than a tonne of methamphetamine at the Bamburi Cement factory in Mombasa. The drugs were part of a consignment intercepted by the Kenya Navy last year, about 630 kilometres off the Mombasa coast.
Methamphetamine is a highly addictive synthetic drug that can cause severe psychosis, heart attacks and strokes. The Institute for Security Studies (ISS), a think-tank, has warned that East Africa’s coastline is increasingly becoming not just a transit route for drugs destined for other markets but also an entry point for drugs intended for local users.
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