Two Iranian nationals are in police custody as Kenyan investigators probe their conduct following their arrest.
According to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the duo uses stupefying methods on its targets.
The duo, 56-year-old Heidari Mansoior Eslam and his 40-year-old accomplice, Babaei Ahmad Mirzaaga, were arrested in Thika, where they were advancing their schemes.
They had made a stop at a mobile phone outlet when its owner discovered their motive.
The shopkeeper, according to the DCI, could connect the duo with a previous case in which another trader was robbed of KSh 15,000.
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"The sharp-eyed shopkeeper became suspicious when the pair pretended to be customers looking to purchase a phone. He suspected the two of being involved in a case of theft in a nearby shop just a month prior, which had the wheels turning in his mind," the DCI said.
The mobile phone shopkeeper immediately alerted the victim of the duo's previous fraud.
He arrived and positively identified the Iranians.
"The other shopkeeper positively identified the two foreigners, as he was indeed a victim of their stupefying tactics, which had left him 15,000 shillings poorer a month ago," the DCI said.
The two shopkeepers raised an alarm and attracted the public, which was determined to punish the foreigners.
Luckily for the foreigners, the police showed up at the scene as the members of the public contemplated administering mob justice on them.
The law enforcers left with them for the Thika Police Station, where they were booked in as the two shopkeepers recorded their statements.
"Now, the foreigners find themselves cooling their heels at Thika Police Station, as they undergo the necessary processing ahead of their arraignment," the DCI said.
Elsewhere, the DCI officers in Mombasa recently arrested a woman accused of staging a robbery against her British lover.
The suspect, identified as Samira Mumbi Kiarie, had allegedly courted the Briton online for several months before luring him to her Nyali apartment for what appeared to be a romantic date.
According to investigators, Samira charmed the man with promises of lasting love, and he visited her residence unaware that he was walking into a planned heist.
Moments after the date began, two men stormed into the apartment, one posing as Samira’s enraged husband and the other brandishing a fake police ID.
The DCI reported that the supposed husband accused the Briton of destroying his marriage, while the impersonator threatened to arrest him.
The victim was then forced to transfer Ksh800,000 to mobile numbers provided by the gang.
Once the money was sent, the trio escorted the man out and disappeared into the night.
Detectives later traced forensic leads that led to the arrest of Samira and one of her accomplices, Paul Webster Mangeni, also known as Paulo.
Investigations revealed that the two were part of a wider criminal syndicate that targets foreigners through dating sites, lures them into rented apartments, and robs them of their money.
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