A sh 2.8 billion fake gold case against eight suspects
A case involving 2.8 billion shillings in counterfeit gold has been filed against eight individuals.
Ash 2.8 billion fake gold case: A Nairobi court yesterday granted the Director of Public Prosecutions more time to serve defence with the remaining documents in a criminal case in which eight businessmen are charged with attempting to steal Sh2.85 billion involving fake gold.
The eight suspects namely Charles Vincent Njerenga, Didier Muke, Kelvin Mwaura Ngotho,Brian Otiende, Patrick Otieno, Mark Kabete, Ken Kiboi, Joshua Ngandi who appeared before Milimani senior principal magistrate Martha Nanzushi have since denied having attempted to steal $19,000,000 (Sh2.85 billion). from Halid Bin Yaacob a Malaysian national, by falsely pretending that they were in a position to sell 500kg of gold to him on December 27, 2023
According to the prosecution the suspects were arrested on December 27, 2023,in Kileleshwa, Nairobi by detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations in the midst of a transactional meeting to fraud the complainant who is Malaysian national.
When the case came up for mention a senior state prosecutor applied for more time to enable the DPP to serve defence with the remaining documents before fixing the hearing date.The magistrate granted the request and directed the case to be mentioned on August 7 to confirm the compliance.
It is said that they were on the verge of a 500-kilogramme semi-refined gold bar fraud scam.
It is also said that, suspects visibly shocked, the complainant who landed in Kenya from Kuala Lumpur on December 25, 2023, following an invitation by Rock Africa miner operated by the suspects.
According to the police, in a well-choreographed scheme, they had set up an operational base in a house in Kileleshwa with fully furnished office-style rooms to steal from unsuspecting foreign nationals.
Yacoob was to meet the seven today to finalise on the first shipment of 50 kg refined gold, per kilogram going for Sh7.2 million.
It is further said that the 500-kilogramme gold amounting to Sh2.85 billion was to be sourced from the Democratic Republic of Congo.
A few minutes into the meeting, detectives from the directorate of criminal investigations busted what would have amounted to billions of shillings in a fake gold scheme.
In the deal, the complainants had previously transferred a portion of the necessary funds to members of the group located in a different foreign country, who then directed the two to their accomplices in Kenya.
The suspects then escorted them to an office situated in a private residence within the city. The surveillance team closely monitored the situation until the main gate was closed, effectively locking them out.
“As the sleuths stealthily gained entry into the compound, some suspects jumped over the fence at the back side of the compound, leading to a chase that saw seven of them arrested including two escapees,” DCI said.
The scene was thoroughly examined, leading to the recovery of various exhibits.
