Kenya police arrest one suspect in Mombasa restaurant grenade attack

May 16, 2012

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Kenyan police have arrested a man suspected to have taken part in a grenade attack on a Mombasa restaurant that killed one woman and injured three people, Police Chief Mathew Iteere told journalists on Wednesday (May 16th).

In the attack Tuesday evening, a gunman opened fire at the Bella Vista restaurant, when security guards blocked him and two accomplices from entering the restaurant. The two accomplices threw grenades into the restaurant and fled.

One of the grenades exploded near the entrance to the restaurant and the other near a car parked outside.

"We lost one of the victims, a lady who was a security guard at the club, she died in hospital," regional police chief Aggrey Adoli told AFP.

Three wounded people remain in hospital, one of whom is in serious condition. "The suspect is one of those injured," Iteere said. "He is now under police guard."

The suspect had booked a bus ticket to leave Mombasa soon after the attack, Iteere said.

"We have retrieved a bus ticket from him and when our officers went to the bus station, they found his luggage, which had a magazine loaded with eight rounds of ammunition," he said. "We also got a laptop from him which we are analysing."

Iteere said police had been looking for the suspect "in connection with various other attacks".

No group has claimed responsibility, though the Kenyan Muslim Youth Centre, a group linked to al-Shabaab, hailed the attack.

"This morning, who's rejoicing and who's mourning? Think about it. Leave Somalia!" one message on its Twitter site read. "One or two grenades in the right locations and boom goes Kenya's economy."

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  • eddy
    May 17, 2012 @ 02:06:10PM

    these are cowardice acts and dont tolerate such acts

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