Six students have been arrested in Kenya for being in possession of petrol and burning a school dormitory in Machakos county.
This incident happened on Thursday night, September 19, 2024, at Mumbuni Boys Secondary School in Machakos county, Kenya.
The six suspects were students from Forms four and three and were found with half a liter of petrol that was used to burn one of the boys’ dormitories.
According to preliminary reports, the fire erupted after students had retired to their dormitories after evening preps; however, no one died, but the students’ property was destroyed.
During an interview with journalists on September 20, 2024, the Machakos County police Commander, Patrick Lobolia, confirmed this incident, stating that the fire brigade swiftly responded when the incident was reported by the school administration, and the fire was prevented from spreading to other buildings next to the burned dormitory.
Lobolia added that the police and the school administration acted swiftly to relocate the students to adjacent dormitories, ensuring their safety, but detectives were on-site throughout the night, combing the area and conducting a headcount to ensure all students were accounted for.
“The dormitory that got burned houses 220 Form two and three students, and it is so good that no student was injured; however, a bottle containing a half-liter of petrol was recovered at the crime scene, which shows that the dormitory was set ablaze,’’ Lobolia noted.
He added that the six suspects who were arrested were taken to Machakos Police Station; however, they were returned to school so that the school’s disciplinary committee could decide on their fate and cautioned students against hooliganism and criminal activities such as razing schools.
Lobolia called upon students to inform their teachers of colleagues who might be involved or planning to engage in criminal activities such as torching schools to avoid such recurrences.
This marks the second incident of unrest at the school this term because last week, students were sent home after rioting and causing extensive damage to school property by hurling stones and smashing window panes.
