Terrorist involved in killing 148 students, 2 others escape prison in Kenya

By Andrew Wasike

NAIROBI, Kenya (AA) – A terrorist involved in the one of the worst terror attacks in Kenyan history was among three al-Qaeda-affiliated al-Shabaab terrorists who on Monday escaped from prison in the Kenyan capital Nairobi.

“A reward of 60 Million shillings ($535,236) will be offered to anyone with information that may lead to the arrest of the following three terror suspects, who escaped from Kamiti Maximum Security Prison today at 1 am,” the Directorate of Criminal Investigations said in a statement late Monday.

A bounty of 20 million Kenya shillings ($178,000) has been offered for information aiding in the capture of Mohamed Ali Abikar, who was serving a 41-year sentence for his involvement in the April 2015 terror attack at Garissa University, which claimed the lives of over 148 students.

Musharaf Abdalla Akhulunga, alias Zarkawi, another escapee, was arrested in 2012 for his participation in a failed terrorist attack on parliament buildings in Nairobi, and was arrested with explosives, ammunition, and firearms.

Joseph Juma Odhiambo, alias Yusuf, was arrested in November 2019 in Somalia while attempting to enlist with the al-Shabaab terror group.

Kenya contributes troops to the African Union peacekeeping mission in Somalia, which has weakened al-Shabaab, a terror group that has been fighting to overthrow the Somali government for years.

The group vowed to carry out terror attacks in Kenya until it pulls out its soldiers from Somalia.

In September 2013, al-Shabaab killed 67 people in a four-day siege at the high-end Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi.​​​​​​​