The June 25 demonstrations left a trail of destruction in Nairobi; business looted and property worth millions destroyed.

And now, criminals who infiltrated the demos, and quietly carted away goods like shoes, mobile phones, clothes, watches, kitchen appliances, foodstuffs, and a wide range of other property, are on a silent mission to try and dispose them, and make some quick money.

However, according to residents who spoke to Wananchi Reporting, many criminals are finding it difficult to move the stolen goods.

"Residents fear touching the goods. Many fear witchcraft or 'kamote'. You never know how the owners protected their businesses," said Andrew, a trader in Pipeline, Nairobi.

The 'illicit' trade is largely taking place in low-end estates in Nairobi – with discussions done within small trusted circles to avoid attracting unwarranted attention.

A woman, who asked us to call her Leah, told Wananchi Reporting that she could not bring herself to buy stolen goods after she was approached.

“A lady I know told me that someone was selling a new pair of shoes at Sh400. The lady had like seven pairs of shoes to dispose. I knew right away that these may have been looted."

"Ideally, the shoes cost Ksh1,800 per pair in the shops” Leah told Wananchi Reporting, adding that she declined to buy the shoes for fear of attracting a curse as she is a staunch Christian.

“I remember I shared the news with my husband, and he told me never to bring stolen goods into his house,” she added – noting that many people fear touching stolen goods.

“It is wrong to buy these stolen goods, knowing very well that someone is crying after losing their business,” Leah told Wananchi Reporting.

She said that many people fear reporting to the police as they fear getting into trouble with criminals and the police.

Timothy, who runs an electronics shop in the estates, said he has received offers, people looking to sell laptops, mobile phones and other electronics at throw-away price.

“I declined to buy them because they can easily get you into trouble, noting that some of these materials can easily be tracked to you, and you end up in jail,” he said – adding that the young men left in a huff.

With the technological explosion, many would be buyers fear being tracked, especially when handling stolen electronics.

According to Section 322(1) of the Penal Code (Cap 63) in Kenya, a person commits the offence of ‘handling stolen goods’ if they dishonestly receive, retain, remove, dispose of, or realise stolen goods, or assist in these actions, knowing or having reason to believe the goods are stolen, but not while directly involved in the theft itself.

Meanwhile, police have been conducting silent operations in attempt to recover goods stolen in the June 25 demos – and apprehend criminals who infiltrated the demos and looted property.

Some of the recovered items included gas cylinders, television sets, mattresses, microwaves and bicycles.