Kitui Central detectives have brought an end to a well-planned scam that saw four suspects cheat a businessman out of Sh105,000 through a fake Kenya Prisons Service tender.
The case has revealed how far some criminals are willing to go to appear official, using convincing language, forged documents, and confident presentations to make their lies believable. Their scheme targeted a businessman who hoped to secure a tender to supply vegetables to Kitui GK Prisons, only for the opportunity to turn out to be a carefully crafted trap.Investigators say the four suspects operated with the ease of people who had rehearsed their roles many times.
They posed as senior Kenya Prisons officers and confidently explained how the tender process worked. They assured the victim that everything was legitimate and that the deal was already lined up for him as long as he followed their instructions.
By the time the businessman began to suspect that something felt unusual, the fraudsters had already convinced him to part with Sh105,000. The money disappeared immediately, leaving him with no tender and no way to trace the people he had trusted.
Detectives, however, had been watching the group quietly.
Their activities had raised suspicion, and officers had started following their movements to understand how the scheme worked and who was involved. When the time was right, they moved in quickly and arrested the four suspects inside a black Toyota Harrier with registration number KCV 543W.
The group was identified as Clement Wachira, Andrew Kimani, Ann Waweru, and Rehema Makandi. The car they were using added to the mystery of how smoothly they had been operating, almost like a team running a formal business rather than a criminal enterprise.
A search of the vehicle revealed just how extensive their operation was. Detectives found 37 fake Kenya Prisons Service tender approval forms, two forged Kenya Prison Service job IDs, eight mobile phones, and six identification cards belonging to different individuals.
These items suggested that the suspects had been targeting more than one victim and might have been planning to continue the scam for as long as possible.
The officers believe that the group was well-organized and had spent time perfecting their scheme to ensure that anyone they targeted would find it difficult to doubt them.
The suspects are now in custody and will face charges in court. Detectives are continuing their investigations to find out whether there are more victims and whether other individuals may have been working with the group.
The authorities have encouraged anyone who may have fallen prey to similar scams or who may have information about related activities to come forward and report anonymously through the DCI channels.
Add Comment