Tristan Voorspuy, a former British soldier, had gone to inspect damage on his ranch when he was shot

This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

A British man has been shot dead on his ranch in central Kenya, in a crime officials blame on armed herders responsible for land invasions in the area.

Thousands of herders – some armed with spears, others with AK47s – have invaded private ranches and wildlife parks with their livestock, slaughtering animals and destroying property in Laikipia, as they go in search of pasture in the drought stricken-country.

Armed herders invade Kenya's most important wildlife conservancy Read more

Tristan Voorspuy, a British citizen who was born in South Africa, had gone to inspect damage on his Sosian ranch, 190km (118m) north of Nairobi, caused by the raiders when he was killed. Local media reported that two cottages on his property had been torched.

“It is true the Sosian ranch director was shot dead while going to inspect damage at his ranch,” local government official Jacob Endung said

“He was riding on his horse when he was felled by bullets. Even the horse was also shot at and is lying there.”

He said police had been unable to access the area due to the high number of the raiders but had managed to fly over the area and saw the body.

“These people are dangerous, they don’t spare anyone,” he said.

Voorspuy spent three years in the British army before moving to Kenya and founding a company specialising in horseback safaris, according to his website.

He and several other shareholders also restored the once derelict Sosian ranch.

Martin Evans, chairman of the Laikipia Farmers Association, said Voorspuy had been a shareholder in Sosian Ranch for more than 15 years and “went to look at the house of a fellow director and friend that had been burnt by invading and well-armed ‘pastoralists’ on Friday.”

When he didn’t return by Sunday afternoon, an aerial search spotted Voorspuy’s injured horse but didn’t catch sight of the rancher, Evans said. A ground team later found his body by the ruins of the house.

He said Voorspuy was passionate about Laikipia, its land and its wildlife. He said that as a safari operator, Voorspuy sought to show that cattle ranching and wildlife and people can co-exist if the land is well looked after.

“We are very sad and despondent tonight. We have lost a good man and a great friend,” Evans said.

In January herders swept into the nearby 44,000-acre (17,600-hectare) Suyian ranch burning thatched huts for tourists.

Elephants, lion, buffalo and zebra have been slaughtered by the herders who come with tens of thousands of livestock, and black and white landowners alike speak of invasions, fear and siege.

The reasons behind the invasions are complex.

Court hears of policy to discredit abuse claims during Mau Mau uprising Read more

Some officials have blamed the land invasions on a severe drought that has made poor herders desperate, and the UN humanitarian chief has appealed for assistance for herders affected by what Kenya’s government has declared a natural disaster.

Ranchers, however, say the land invasions are politically motivated and part of plans to take over their land. While some point to the drought gripping the country, and a spike in human and livestock populations, others say the looming election in August and long-running land gripes have sparked tensions.

The government has done little to stop the invasions and with elections around the corner, few expect vote-costing action against the illegal grazers.

Meanwhile the ethnic logic of Kenyan politics means some candidates stand to benefit from a favourable shift in population dynamics ahead of the vote.

Agence France-Presse and Associated Press contributed to this report

