20100706 AFRICANEWS
Kenya police detained 120 suspected gangs for extorting money from minibus drivers in Nairobi, police said on Tuesday.
The police arrested the gangs in several neighborhoods in Nairobi and minibus stations late Monday and early on Tuesday.
"The suspects were arrested at matatu stages where they have been extorting money from matatu operators," Nairobi Provincial Police Commander Antony Kibuchi told reporters. Kibuchi said that the gangs would be in court on Tuesday.
The Mungiki, which means "multitude" in Kikuyu, started as a sect-like group inspired by Kenya's Mau Mau freedom fighters and following a blend of mystical Christian doctrines and traditional African practices.
The group which has strongholds in Nairobi evolved into an extortionist gang known for skinning, gouging or beheading its victims. They control several well-paid matatu lines in Nairobi and elsewhere.
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