KENYA: The Office of Directorate of Public Prosecution in Kenya which is the National Prosecution Authority established by the Constitution (Art.157) to independently exercise State powers of prosecution
The accused, Jasem Darzadeh Nia, Rahim Baksh Goharam, Hassan Baloch, Imran Baloch Mustafa, Nadeem Jadgal Abdulgani and Emtiyaz Daryayi, face charges of trafficking narcotics valued at Ksh. 8.2 billion.
Appearing before Shanzu Chief Magistrate Anthony Mwicigi, Prosecution indicated it will call 12 witnesses to prove the case.
Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions Joseph Kimanthi reinforced the State’s position, asserting that Kenya’s jurisdiction to handle this matter is grounded in both the Constitution and international law.
“The vessel was not engaged in legitimate activity but in an organised trafficking operation,” explained Kimanthi.
Principal Prosecution Counsel Alex Ndiema led the testimony of the first witness, Kenya Navy Lieutenant Colonel Joab Gitonga, who outlined how a carefully coordinated multinational operation led to the interception of the suspects’ vessel deep.
Lt Col Gitonga told the court that the operation was executed through the Regional Coordination Operations Centre (RCOC), a maritime security hub established to combat transnational crime in the Indian Ocean.
He revealed that on 17th October 2025, the Kenya Navy received intelligence on two suspicious vessels namely MV Igor and MV Chevy.
Acting swiftly, authorities tracked MV Igor, believed to be heading towards the East African coast.With support from a Seychelles Coast Guard patrol aircraft, the vessel was intercepted on 20th October 2025, approximately 350 nautical miles off the Kenyan coast.
The court heard that the dhow, later identified as Mashallah, had no flag, failed to respond to radio calls, and appeared to be drifting, which are clear indicators of illicit activity.
A boarding team of marine commandos discovered six crew members with Iranian identification documents but no registration papers.
A subsequent search uncovered 769 packets of a white crystalline substance, initially described as “ice,” which was later confirmed to be methamphetamine weighing over one tonne.
The vessel was escorted to Mombasa and handed over to a multi-agency team for further investigations.
