Kenyan robbers kill 3 policemen, set prisoners free

NAKURU, Kenya, Jan 4 (Reuters) Robbers killed 3 policemen escorting cash from a bank in Kenya and set free 47 suspected criminals after a police van taking prisoners to jail stumbled across the heist, witnesses and police said today.

Police said robbers armed with AK-47 rifles ambushed a van transporting cash from a bank near the western town of Nakuru, and escaped with 2.5 million shillings.

''The thugs were waiting by the roadside for the van and when it approached they opened fire indiscriminately, catching two of our officers,'' Everest Wasige, the area police chief, said.

Meanwhile, police escorting prisoners from a Nakuru court to a nearby town stopped to find out what was going on, he said.

Caught by surprise, the robbers opened fire on the police van and killed another policeman.

Robbery is common in Kenyan towns although it is more pronounced in the capital Nairobi, nicknamed ''Nairobbery'' by some residents.

Police say murders, robberies and carjackings dropped in 2006 but other categories or crime such as rape, incest and sodomy increased during the year.

REUTERS PB RN210