Kenya Insights

Tag: forgery

  • Court Declines To Issue ID To Somali Man Charged With Forgery

    Court Declines To Issue ID To Somali Man Charged With Forgery

    A court rejected a bid by a Somali man to have his forged Kenyan identity card.

    Abdirizak Mohamed Hassan is facing charges of obtaining Kenyan registration by false pretences.

    The prosecution told court that the said ID is a crucial document to their case and hence cannot be released to the accused at the moment.

    Hassan appeared before Kahawa Law Courts Magistrate Monday for a hearing of an application where the prosecution intended to move the court to revoke his bond terms citing interference of witnesses.

    His lawyer pleaded with the court to have the prosecution release his ID and also asked the court to have the appearance be dispensed with.

    However, the prosecution opposed the trajectory by the defence saying that the application at hand deals with cancellation of bond terms and hence attendance cannot be dispensed with.

    “We believe his attendance is quite important, if the court rules that the bond terms should be cancelled therefore your honour we need to be aware of the accused person’s whereabouts,” the prosecution said.

    The prosecution asked the court to grant them two weeks to be able to file further affidavit.

    Hassan was charged with illegally obtaining Kenyan registration by presenting forged documents at Mandera North Sub-County Registrar of persons in September 2020.

    He also faces another charge of giving false information to a District Registrar of Persons, Mandera North Sub-County in order to procure a Kenyan National ID.

    Further, he is alleged to have been found unlawfully present in Kenya.

    The prosecution alleges that the accused on November 10, 2024, at Eastleigh in Nairobi County, being a Somali National was found to be unlawfully present in Kenya.

    The hearing of the case will be on February 18, 2025.

  • Turkana Politician Charged With Gold Fraud

    Turkana Politician Charged With Gold Fraud

    A Mombasa court has charged a businessman suspected of falsely obtaining millions of shillings from women across the country.

    Simon Ekai Ewoi was charged before Senior Resident Magistrate Hon. David Odhiambo on four charges of acquiring money under false pretences in violation of Section 313 of the penal code.

    The suspect is accused of posing as a wealthy businessman who preys on his victims at posh restaurants, airports as well as at the beach during early morning walks.

    In most of the cases, police said the suspect introduced himself as a businessman dealing in the exportation of gold and would request his victims for loans to be repaid within two days, claiming that his accounts had been frozen by the government.

    In the first count, Ewoi allegedly obtained Sh21,735,350 from Caroline Nyambura Njogu on diverse dates between June 20, 2019, and February 22, 2024, in Mombasa County.

    He was also charged jointly with others, not before the court in the second count of obtaining by pretences Sh1,573,850 from Caroline Wanjiru Muthoni on diverse dates between June 9 2022 and August 20 2023, within the Republic of Kenya.

    He was also charged in the third count, along with others not before the court, with obtaining Sh1,573,850 from Mary Muteti under false pretences on various days between July 9, 2019 and November 8, 2020, in Mombasa County.

    In the fourth count, Ewoi allegedly with others not before court, with intent to defraud, obtained Sh 111, 930 from Annie Hope Masai on diverse dates between October 30 2021 and November 10 2021 in Mombasa County.

    The court heard that the accused and his accomplices obtained the total sum of Sh24,263,780 from the four complaints by falsely pretending that he was in a position to partner with them in the gold and mercury trade.

    The accused pled not guilty to all counts, and Senior Prosecution Counsel Barbara Sombo opposed his immediate release due to ongoing police investigations.

    Sombo prayed to Hon. Odhiambo that the accused be detained further to allow more complainants to record their statements and allow investigators to analyse some documentary evidence.

    The trial magistrate ordered that Ewoi be detained at Central Police Station for ten days to allow detectives to complete their investigation.

    What police are investigating

    Ekai is being investigated for the offence of obtaining huge sums of money from his victims mainly being rich businesswomen.

    According to the investigating officer George Willy Ndirangu, the suspect is being investigated over claims of obtaining money by false pretense.

    He told the court that police were investigating the origin of a signature believed to be that of former President Uhuru Kenyatta which was used in one of Ekais documents to con a complainant Ksh40 million.

    “There are documents containing signatures which are believed to be forged and they have not been investigated yet,” Ndirangu said.

    He informed the court that police needed more time to visit the suspect’s home and retrieve the documents which would be used in the trial.

    The court ordered that he appear in court on April 8, 2024, and be freed on a Sh7 million bond with a similar surety and two guarantors who provide specific facts about their locations.

  • School Principal Throws Sudi Under The Bus In Forgery Case

    School Principal Throws Sudi Under The Bus In Forgery Case

    Former Highway Secondary School Principal Patrick Maritim testified on Thursday against Kapseret Member of Parliament Oscar Sudi, claiming that the legislator did not take his KCSE exams at the school in 2006, as he had claimed.

    In the case where the lawmaker is accused of forging examination credentials, Maritim told the court that Sudi’s name was not listed as a student there in 2006.

    “According to the records, Sudi did not sit for KCSE exams…Oscar Sudi’s name is nowhere to be found,” Maritim stated.

    Mr Maritim told the court that the index number Mr Sudi claims to be his belonged to another student.

    The prosecution called the witness after a Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec) official stated that Mr Sudi did not register for or sit for the 2006 KCSE examination at the school.

    Maritiim received a letter from the anti-corruption agency seeking information on Mr Sudi’s enrollment at the school sometime in 2015, when he was principal, he said.

    The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) had asked him to confirm whether Mr Sudi’s name was on the school’s records and to supply the admission registry.

    “I went through the admission books from 2005 to 2009, but could not find the name. I also went through the records of students who sat their KCSE in 2006 and had collected their school leaving certificates but could not find his name,” said the witness.

    Despite the MP missing the mentioning for the second time in a row due to illness, the hearing proceeded in his absence.

    The court was informed on Wednesday that Sudi was out of jurisdiction and had traveled to Turkey for medical treatment, but Trial Magistrate Felix Kombo ordered his lawyers to tender evidence.

  • Sudi’s KCSE Certificates Are Forgeries, KNEC Tells Court

    Sudi’s KCSE Certificates Are Forgeries, KNEC Tells Court

    Kenya National Examination Council (KNEC) has told Milimani Anti-Corruption court that Kapseret MP Oscar Sudi obtained his form four certificate through forged documents.

    Through KNEC Principal research officer Nabiki Kashu, the exam body told chief magistrate Felix Kombo MP Sudi was not among candidates in the year 2006.

    “The name of Oscar Sudi does not appear in our database records as having sat for the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) in 2006 at either Parklands or Highway secondary schools”, Kashu told the court.

    She added that the code in the academic certificate presented by the legislator from Highway secondary school belongs to Parklands Secondary school

    Kashu was testifying in a case where Mr Sudi has been charged with forging a KCSE certificate purporting it to be a genuine document issued by the Knec.

    The MP is also accused of forging a diploma certificate in Business Management purporting it to be a genuine document issued by the Kenya Institute of Management.

    Kashu further told the Anti-Corruption court that he received a letter from the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) on September 17, 2015, regarding Sudi’s academic results for the year 2006.

    She added that the letter asked the exam body to find out whether such a candidate sat for the KCSE in the year 2006 at Highway secondary school in Nairobi and was awarded certificate serial number ‪3381074‬under index 401006/081.

    Kashu added that upon checking the records, she said code 401006 does not belong to Highway secondary but Parklands secondary school. The code for Highway secondary school according to KNEC records was 401005.

    She further addes there was no school called Highway High school during the 2006 KCSE examination as indicated in Sudi’s certificate and such school never existed then.

    She further told the court that Index 401006/081 belonged to Obaje Bob Onyango who was registered and sat for the 2006 KCSE examinations at Parklands secondary school.

    According to the Knec officer, there is no possibility of two schools sharing a code number during a given examination. Similarly there is no possibility of two candidates sharing an index number.

    The MP is facing other counts of giving false information to an IBC officer and lying to the electoral body and the EACC.

    He is said to have presented the certificates to the two commissions with the intention of deceiving them.

    Sudi allegedly provided false information to Derrick Kaisha, an officer of EACC, at Haron Court Hotel, Nairobi County, in September 2015.

    The legislator is also accused of making a false declaration under oath through a self-declaration form to IEBC at Barng’etuny plaza in Eldoret on that date.

    This was contrary to Section 46(1)(d) as read with Section 46(2) at the Leadership and Integrity Act

    He is further accused of making a false statutory declaration contrary to Section 11 of the Oaths and Statuary declarations.

    Sudi was charged based on the EACC’s recommendations to the DPP, following investigations.

    The lawmaker is out on a cash bail of Sh300, 000 or a bond of Sh600, 000.