A 26-year-old man was on Thursday, December 4, charged with terrorism financing following an Anti-Terrorism Police Unit (ATPU) investigation that traced a sum of money to an alleged Islamic State account.
According to the court report, Stephen Kiveve Musembi faces accusations of receiving Ksh 6,417 linked to a Binance cryptocurrency account believed to be operated by the Islamic State (IS) East Africa Cell.
Prosecutors told the court that the funds were allegedly sent through a mobile number registered to another individual on October 14, 2024.
This transaction forms the basis of charges under Section 5(1) of the Prevention of Terrorism Act, with Musembi accused of dealing in ‘terrorist property.’
The 26-year-old pleaded not guilty to two charges: collecting property for terrorist acts and handling funds controlled by a terrorist organization.
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“Do you understand the charges I have read to you?” the presiding Judge asked before Musembi took his plea. “How do you plead?”
“Not guilty, your honour,” Musembi declared.
In a similar case that highlights a troubling pattern of small-sum terror financing through mobile money platforms, Mariam Ali Abdalla, a 56-year-old Kenyan woman from Jomvu, has been charged with two offenses under the Prevention of Terrorism Act.
Mariam is accused of receiving Ksh 1,922 through a mobile number registered in her name, with the funds allegedly originating from a Binance account operated by the Islamic State (IS) East Africa Cell.
Prosecutors say she knowingly dealt with property linked to a terrorist group, forming the basis of two counts: collecting property for terrorist acts and handling funds controlled by a terrorist organization.
The investigations by the Anti-Terrorism Police Unit continue as authorities seek to dismantle financial networks suspected of supporting extremist activities in the region.
