A group of young individuals have been apprehended following the filming and posting of a staged robbery outside a police station in Kilifi, Kenya, on the popular platform TikTok.
The quartet, including a 17-year-old, produced a video titled “wezi mbele ya police station” (robbery outside a police station), which they uploaded on TikTok. However, law enforcement authorities did not take the matter lightly.The police seized the motorcycle used in the prank.
The video depicted an apparently intoxicated individual exiting the Administration Police (AP) canteen and being robbed by two others on a motorcycle.
The youths were apprehended at their residences in Kilifi, with the eldest being 27 years old. Among those arrested was the 18-year-old cameraman, with the police identifying the culprits through CCTV footage from the AP canteen.
Confirming the incident, Kilifi North Sub-county Police Commander Kenneth Maina assured the public of their safety while stating that investigations were ongoing. He mentioned that the suspects would face charges, including cybercrimes.
Maina clarified, “The viral video of a daylight robbery at the Kilifi Administration Police canteen in Kilifi was not real but a prank by a group of youths creating content for their TikTok account,” as reported by local media outlets.
Maina added that efforts were underway to apprehend another suspect who remained at large.
According to Maina, the youths admitted to seeking to attract followers to their TikTok account. “There were five youths, and we managed to arrest four of them, and the other one we have a crucial lead that will lead us to an arrest,” he stated.
Melissa Enoch
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