Detectives from the Anti-Terrorism Police Unit (ATPU) have arrested a suspected Al-Shabaab recruiter in Mombasa.

The 45-year-old man was detained for allegedly being one of the people funding and recruiting youths to join the Al-Qaeda linked terror group.

He was picked up for questioning from a restaurant near Likoni and driven to his house on Saturday evening where a search was conducted for vital clues. Mombasa County Commander Robert Kitur confirmed the arrest but could not divulge more information.

The suspect is the chairman of Likoni Community Development Sacco that was registered last year, and which police believe has been used to recruit youths to join the Al-Shabaab group.

His family members who addressed journalists at Makupa Police Station however maintained that he is innocent saying he had no ties with Al-Shabaab or any other criminal gangs.

“He is innocent…all the accusations levelled against him are false,” one of the family members said.

On April 8, foreign exchange bureaus and money transfer agencies listed alongside firms and individuals listed on a terror watch list in the Kenya Gazette closed shop following a directive by the government.

The companies listed as entities suspected to be associated with Al-Shabaab were ordered to explain to the government their owners and associates.