Detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) have arrested a man accused of orchestrating a scheme to defraud a Nigerian national of 150 million Naira (Ksh 12.6 million).
In a statement on Friday, January 24, the DCI said Stephen Mugambi Colbert and his accomplices posed as legitimate businessmen offering private jet services to transport unspecified investment funds from Kenya to Nigeria.
"While presenting themselves as genuine businessmen, Mugambi and his cabal of malefactors approached the victim pretending that they were in a position to hire a private jet to transport unspecified investments funds from Kenya to Nigeria, a fact they knew to be false," the DCI revealed in a statement.
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According to the DCI, unaware of the con, the Nigerian national made the payment, only to discover later that he had fallen victim to a scam when he could no longer reach Mugambi or his associates.
Desperate for justice, the victim reported the incident to the DCI, prompting a swift investigation and manhunt.
“Having burnt his fingers, the foreign national approached the DCI seeking help where a manhunt for the snake oil merchants was launched leading to the arrest of Mugambi. Whereas his accomplices narrowly escaped the sherlocks’ dragnet, it is just a matter of time before they are smoked out of their hideout and brought to book,” the DCI stated.
Following the incident, DCI further warned the public to remain vigilant, especially when dealing with large financial transactions or businesses that seem too good to be true.
"The DCI strongly warns that no efforts will be spared in dealing with such fraudsters. Further, we caution members of the public to do their due diligence in establishing the credibility of such businesses to avoid losing their hard-earned money.
"Additionally, the public is also cautioned of an emerging trend where fraudsters have been found to be using cryptocurrency as a means of exchange outside the formal financial system in a bid to evade detection," the DCI said.
