Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) officers on Friday arrested nine people at the Meru lands office on allegations of corruption.

The officers, who were from Nairobi County, raided the office mid-morning, causing panic among workers. They arrested four land officers and five brokers.

COMPLAINTS

According to a source among the officers who carried out the raid, members of the public had complained for several months.

“Services that are supposed to be free of charge, such as title searches, were being offered at Sh500. There was even a notice on the wall indicating that the service was supposed to be paid for,” said the officer.

According to a circular issued in April by Lands Principal Secretary Dr Nicholas Muraguri, the search fees was waived to facilitate land transactions.

Another officer said detectives have camped at the office for the past two weeks to gathering information.

“We knew who we were targeting because we already had information,” said the source.

One suspect, who claimed she wanted to go for a short call, was caught red handed with Sh8,000 as she tried to throw it out of the window of the toilet.

The suspects were taken to the EACC's regional office in Isiolo County for further questioning.

EACC spokesman Yasin Amaro was expected to issue a statement on the raid.