Bomb scare in Thika town sends residents scampering for safety

There was a bomb scare in Thika Town after a suspicious object was found inside a shop.

The gadget was discovered neatly wrapped inside an animal products shop along Uhuru Street on Tuesday morning.

Police were immediately alerted and arrived at the scene a few minutes later.

They were told that the owner of the shop, an elderly woman, sounded the alarm when she came in and found the strange device.

Thika Administration Police Commandant Peter Nzimbi however said detectives concluded that it was not an explosive.

Investigations later revealed that a young man, identified as Abel Githinji, had left the power circuit inside the shop.

During questioning, Githinji told police that he had carried the device for repair but did not find the electrician’s shop open.

It is then that he decided to leave it at the old lady’s shop and go to work, he added.

Githinji was taken into police custody after witnesses identified him as the man who left the object at the animal products shop.

The police boss assured residents that they are safe and urged them to continue to report suspicious incidents to them.

Recently, the National Police Service through the Ministry of Interior warned Kenyans to be cautious during the Ramadhan season.

The alert came after reports emerged that Al Shabaab may be planning to launch an attack.