On Friday, two brothers, Brian and Juma, had hired a m otorbike and knew they would escort the body of their friend to Butula Constituency in Busia County and get back home in Matayos Constituency safely.

However, as fate would have it, Brian and Juma were hit from behind by a speeding Probox vehicle at Mundika market center along the Busia-Kisumu highway. 

It was alleged that the car was transporting contraband goods from Uganda, killing the two brothers on the spot and the rider of the motorbike who died while receiving treatment at Busia County General Hospital.

The three were among the friends who were transporting the body of their friend only known as Otis, who also happened to die in a road accident in Busia town.

According to eyewitnesses, the two brothers and the boda boda operator met their deaths when a speeding vehicle lost control and rammed into the motorbike.

“I was part of the mourner’s convoy and after we successfully took the body of our friend while on our way back to Busia town, I was behind the two brothers, and in a twinkle of an eye a Probox vehicle overtook our vehicle, lost control and hit the three from behind killing the two on the spot,” said Jane Osinde.

She added, “It is so sad, and this is a triple tragedy, the two are brothers who share a father and mother. We urge the road users to be extremely careful to avoid unnecessary accidents and deaths, especially from those transporting contraband goods from Uganda.”

However, the angry locals set the vehicle on fire together with the goods it was carrying, save for the driver and his co-driver, who managed to escape and ran away from the scene.

Residents are, however, accusing traffic police and security teams of corruption and negligence, alleging that the driver of the vehicle had bribed police officers to transport contraband goods.

“We want the government, through the Inspector General of Police, to visit Busia and put to an end the massive corruption happening on our roads whereby police are allowing people to transport contraband goods from Uganda to Kenya by being bribed, actions that are causing accidents and loss of lives,” said John Odera.

Odera alleged that the speeding Probox vehicle had bribed police on the road before it caused an accident, adding that security agencies in the border county have been compromised by business people transporting smuggled goods, which is making the country lose money through tax evasion.

“We are asking ourselves how did police allowed the car in such a speed condition to pass through all police checkpoints while carrying contraband goods. This is what is giving people who are doing illegal business to have a bad attitude on our roads and causing accidents because they are protected. We want Douglas Kanja to intervene and crack the whip,” said Odera.

However, when the Standard Newspaper reached out to Busia County Commander Ahmed Abdilleh to respond to the allegations of bribery claims and the accident, he declined to comment on the matter, insisting on a physical meeting with the members of the fourth estate for him to comment on the matter.

Western Regional Commissioner Irungu Macharia condemned the death of the three people, stating that police are doing investigations.

However, he did not confirm the allegations of the contraband goods in the car, stating that such accusations amount to forensic investigations from relevant police agents

“The three were hit by a speeding Probox and lost their lives, and the car was burnt to ashes. I am not aware if the vehicle had smuggled goods, but to establish that, it will need police officers to conduct forensic analysis. If it is true our officers are being bribed, then we will have to do investigations, but if drivers are breaking traffic rules, then the law will have to catch up with them,” said Macharia.