2 businessmen were charged with packing soil in Ksh1 million sugar bags and planned to defraud a customer in Eastleigh, Nairobi. Police officers who launched a manhunt for the suspects and apprehended them said that the incident occurred on Friday, January 29.
The duo was arraigned before Makadara Law Court’s Chief Magistrate Angeli Kithinji, on Tuesday, February 2. The prosecution claimed that Khalif Abdi Noor and Ezekiel Omeka packed soil in 300 sugar bags.
It added that the two suspects narrowed on 50-kilogram bags with the logos of a popular sugar company in Kenya to defraud their unsuspecting customer. Omar Mohammed, the victim, had offered them a tender to supply sugar worth Ksh1 million.
Noor and Omeka were further accused of using accomplices to orchestrate the plot. Their alibis were sent to deliver the sugar at Mohammed’s store as the duo who received the money fled to a secret location to divide the money.
Khalif Abdi Noor (left) and Ezekiel Omeka (right) at a Makadara Law Court on Tuesday, January 2, 2021
Daily Nation
The businessman, however, raised an alarm after discovering that the 300 sugar bags contained soil. By then, the deliverers had already driven away from the store.
Law enforcers said that they were tracking the lorry which was used to defraud the businessman.
Noor and Omeka denied the charges pressed against them. The latter claimed that he was being mistaken for a robber as he was arrested alongside Noor who was just but a neighbour.
He added that he was a technician and was repairing gadgets at Noor’s house when police raided the premises and accosted them. He alleged that his only mistake was being in the company of the co-accused.
The magistrate released them on Ksh 300,000 cash or Ksh 400,000 bond pending a hearing on June 29.
Over the past years, the Directorate of Criminal Investigation heightened its crackdown on syndicates, scammers and fraudsters within Nairobi County and its -environs. They targetted suspects who were notorious for conning citizens in an automobile, freight and technology (mobile and laptops) sectors to fake money and firearms syndicates.
They also partnered with other entities such as the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) to curb car and identity theft criminals, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) to arrest fake tender deals suspects and also rallied the public to report and expose incidents.
In August 2020, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) ranked Kenya as one of the top nations prone to cybercrime and other scams. The Interpol report dated August 14, detailed that online organised crime in Kenya and other African states is being motivated by digitisation which makes it easier for criminals to target unsuspecting prey.