A multi-agency enforcement team uncovered an illegal alcohol manufacturing plant operating from a residential maisonette in Happy Valley Estate, Thika, leading to the arrest of a businesswoman and the seizure of large quantities of suspected illicit liquor and manufacturing equipment.
The intelligence-led operation, conducted on Friday night, established that the suspect, Sarah Nyambura Mwangi, had allegedly converted a bedroom on the ground floor of her family home into a storage and packaging facility, while an adjoining bathroom had been transformed into a makeshift distillery.
Investigators discovered 250-litre drums fitted with taps used to manually dispense suspected ethanol into bottles.
The bottles were then sealed and labelled with counterfeit excise stamps before being packaged for distribution.
When the multi-agency team, led by the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA), gained access to the heavily secured compound at around 2 a.m. on Saturday, they found a silver-grey Toyota Probox, already loaded with about 100 cartons of Blue Ice and Chrome Vodka, allegedly ready for distribution.
The operation resulted in the seizure of 750 litres of suspected ethanol, 170 cartons of assorted bottled alcoholic drinks, half a roll of counterfeit excise stamps and Toyota Probox believed to have been used in the operation.
The suspect was arrested and detained at Thika Police Station pending further investigations.
The seized products and the vehicle were taken to a KRA warehouse for preservation as exhibits.
KRA said the raid forms part of an ongoing crackdown on sophisticated tax evasion and illicit alcohol manufacturing networks. Investigators have noted a growing trend of illegal distilleries being concealed within private homes in affluent neighbourhoods to evade detection.
According to the authority, such operations are often linked to ethanol smuggling, counterfeit excise stamps, tax evasion and extensive distribution networks supplying second-generation alcoholic beverages to retailers.
KRA warned that manufacturing excisable alcoholic products without a valid licence is a serious offence under Kenyan law. It added that excisable goods and vehicles used to facilitate tax crimes may be seized and forfeited under the provisions of the Tax Procedures Act, 2015.
The authority also urged transporters and vehicle owners to verify the nature and tax compliance of goods before accepting transportation assignments, warning that vehicles used in tax-related offences may be confiscated.
Members of the public have been encouraged to report suspected tax evasion, illicit manufacturing, smuggling and counterfeit excise stamps through KRA’s whistleblowing channels, with assurances that all reports will be handled confidentially.
