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  • 2019-01-30 (xsd:date)
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  • No, Interpol did not issue a letter calling for the arrest of 9 high-profile Kenyans in drug trafficking cases (en)
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  • A supposed official letter from Interpol claiming nine high profile individuals in Kenya were wanted for arrest in drug trafficking cases has been shared in several Kenyan Facebook groups. However, Interpol told AFP that they did not issue the document, which contains some grammatical errors. The document appeared online on December 23, 2018, and was posted on several Facebook Groups including this one with more than 190,000 followers. Screenshot of Facebook post claiming Interpol issued a letter of arrest for 9 Kenyans in drug trafficking cases The letter was then used as a basis for articles such as this one , while this tweet sparked a heated debate as it implied the missive was authentic. According to the letter, high-profile individuals including two governors, one ex-governor and former Members of Parliament, were allegedly linked to a drug trafficking network. It stated that eight people were wanted for arrest but then listed the names of nine individuals. Interpol told AFP via email that they had not issued the document, without giving further comment on the allegations it contained. While INTERPOL does not comment on specific cases or individuals, please note the document you refer to was not issued by INTERPOL, the email read. The names of the nine individuals did not appear in a search in the ‘Wanted Persons’ section on Interpol’s website. The nine names included Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho, who was also falsely accused of being on Interpol's Wanted list in another Facebook post . There have been rumours about links between some of the people named in the letter and a drug cartel in the past. Ex-MP John Harun Mwau was actually included on a list of foreign individuals to be sanctioned under the Kingpin Act , without giving further details, in a letter from former US President Barack Obama on June 1, 2011. Also, a former Kenyan security minister, George Saitoti, accused six of the people named in the letter as being part of a drug cartel in 2010. However, investigations were never completed and the accusations were dismissed as a political attack. (en)
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