Six police officers were Monday admitted in hospital after they were attacked by more than 200 youths who were illegally harvesting tea at a James Finlay farm in Bomet County.
The confrontation between the police and farm invaders is the second one in a month that left one cop with serious head injuries in April, police said.
James Finlay has been bought out after allegations of mistreatment of workers.
A documentary by the BBC, published on February 20, lifted the lid on the sexual exploitation of female workers by managers, supervisors and contractors in the company.
James Finlay and Ekaterra were dealt a major business blow with the Rainforest Alliance withdrawing licences for their products.
James Finlay is in the process of finalising the sale of its estates in Kericho and Bomet counties to Sri Lankan-based Browns Investments PLC in a deal that has kicked off a storm, with local communities and county governments claiming not to have been involved despite owning the land occupied by the company on a 99-year lease.
Ekaterra bought the estates it occupies in the region from Unilever Tea Kenya almost two years ago.
Police said during last week’s confrontation, one suspect is reported to have drowned in Itare River, Konoin Constituency, as he fled from police officers who were dispersing youths from Chemasingi tea estate in Chepchabas civic ward.
Another youth, a 16-year-old boy, is also admitted at Kericho County Referral Hospital after a live bullet fired by police ripped through his abdomen and exited through the back, narrowly missing his internal organs.
Bomet police boss Mathews Mangira said two of the six police officers who sustained injuries are in a bad state.
“They were rushed to Chebitet Health Centre and Central Hospital owned by Ekattera tea company before being transferred to Kericho County Referral Hospital for specialised treatment,” he said.
A police vehicle was also torched and reduced to ashes by the youths.
The Toyota Landcruiser attached to Mogogosiek police divisional headquarters in Konoin was towed to Mara Mara police station.
Police are hunting them down.
Police said 14 police officers on patrol within the estate on Monday were ambushed by the youths who had invaded the plantation to illegally harvest the green leaf.
The youths were armed with crude weapons including stones, slingshots, pangas, catapults, and wooden sticks, a police report said.
The officers fired teargas at the youths in a bid to disperse them.
The policemen retreated after exhausting the teargas in their possession but were surrounded by youths who erected barricades on the road.
And as the officers diverted to a different route, their vehicle skidded into tea bushes and got stuck in the mud.
The attackers caught up with the officers and began pelting them with stones, resulting in injuries and forcing them to withdraw with the help of Finlay’s company vehicles, leaving behind the patrol car.
Some 52 live ammunition were used by police in the course of dispersing the youths.
The police vehicle was vandalised with two wheels and a battery stolen by the rowdy youths who torched it afterwards, police said.