Kenya charges two after escape of Shabaab-linked man

Published: March 23, 2010

Kenya has charged two businessmen with aiding a man suspected of involvement with Somali rebels to escape from police custody in the western Kenya border town of Busia, police said on Tuesday.
Hussein Hashi Farah was seized by immigration officials ten days ago as he crossed from Uganda into Kenya. Unconfirmed local media reports said border guards held Farah after he presented an Australian passport.
The Australian High Commission in Nairobi was not immediately available for comment. Police described Farah as “Somali-born” and said they were investigating claims he had links with Somalia’s hardline al Shabaab insurgents.
“I can confirm that the two people were charged in a Busia court on Monday in relation to the escape of the man identified as Hussein Hashi Farah,” Kenya’s deputy police spokesman, Charles Owino, told Reuters.
“The police officers who were on duty at the time the terror suspect disappeared from police custody … are still under inquiry.”
Al Shabaab, which professes loyalty to al Qaeda and wants to impose strict Islamic law in Somalia, has previously threatened to launch attacks on Uganda and Burundi, which have contributed troops to the African Union’s peacekeeping mission in Somalia.
It was not immediately clear if Farah had fled back into Uganda or stayed in Kenya. It was also not clear how the two businessmen helped him.
Source:Reuters

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