Telcos demand stiff penalties for cable vandals

On Wednesday, the firm announced that it has apprehended suspected masterminds in the North Rift region.

In January, Telkom Kenya embarked on a community policing strategy which led to the recent arrests.

Other operators such as KDN have been forced to hire security consultants in order to protect the integrity of their networks.

“Investigations confirm that the three masterminds have been facilitating the rising cases of copper cable vandalism as they appear to be the main financiers. Once vandalised, our cables are burned in clearings within a nearby forest to remove the rubber insulation and later sold to these masterminds for onward sale as scrap copper wire,” said Ms Angela Ng’ang’a-Mumo, the Telkom Kenya head of corporate communications.

Telkom Kenya conducted a joint operation led by Eldoret OCPD, Muindi Kioko, that netted the suspects.