Detectives have intercepted a cocaine consignment valued at approximately Sh2.19 million during routine passenger and luggage screening at the Malaba One-Stop Border Post (OSBP).
The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) said the operation led to the arrest of one suspect after officers discovered an unattended parcel aboard a passenger bus travelling from Kampala to Nairobi.
According to the DCI, the parcel raised suspicion during routine screening, prompting officers to subject it to further examination.
However, the inspection took an unexpected turn when the bus driver and conductor reportedly left the scene, abandoning the vehicle and its passengers.
Detectives from the National Anti-Narcotics Investigations Bureau (NANIB) in Malaba subsequently took over the consignment for further processing.
Preliminary tests confirmed that the substance was cocaine, packaged in eight pellets weighing a total of 547.99 grammes, the DCI reported.
The consignment has an estimated street value of Sh2,191,960.
As investigations progressed, detectives arrested the bus turn boy in connection with the incident.
The DCI said investigators were pursuing the driver and conductor as they sought to establish the circumstances surrounding the consignment and the respective roles of those involved.
The bus was detained at the border post while its management arranged alternative transport for the affected passengers.
The interception comes amid the DCI's efforts to combat narcotics trafficking through transport routes and border crossings.
Through NANIB, the agency said it remained committed to tackling drug trafficking networks seeking to exploit such routes.
Investigations are ongoing as detectives seek to establish how the cocaine consignment came to be aboard the bus and determine the circumstances surrounding its discovery.
The DCI did not provide further details on the suspect's arrest or indicate whether additional arrests had been made.
