Father and son busted as part of the M-Pesa fraud syndicate in Nairobi
The DCI noted that it has since been established that the father was the mastermind of the scheme and had introduced his son to it
Sleuths from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) have busted a theft syndicate M-pesa agents in Nairobi and arrested a father and his son in the Komarock’s Nyama Villa estate after fraudulently stealing Sh236,000 at an M-pesa in Gikomba market.
The duo are suspected to be part of the theft racket.
“The duo, 49-year-old Peter Mwendwa Musyoka and his 23-year-old son, Dennis Musyoka, were arrested at their hideout in Komarock’s Nyama Villa estate after Shauri Moyo detectives trailed digital footprints linking them to a Sh236,000 M-Pesa fraud carried out early last month, at the Gikomba market,” the DCI stated.
According to the DCI, detectives recovered items believed to have been used in the scheme including laptops and smartphones.
“At their residence, detectives recovered used and unused SIM cards, ID cards, agent and paybill numbers from Safaricom, Airtel and Telkom, as well as laptops and smartphones believed to have been used in the scheme,” the statement added.
The DCI noted that it has since been established that the father was the mastermind of the scheme and had introduced his son to it.
“It has since been established that the father is the mastermind- introducing his son to the illicit trade and grooming him into conning unsuspecting M-Pesa operators. Together, they form part of a broader syndicate targeting Nairobi’s mobile money dealers,” the statement further read.
Both suspects remain in custody as detectives continue pursuing other members of the syndicate before their arraignment in court.
The search for the syndicate comes days after two suspects linked to money fraud in Lamu pretending to be Safaricom agents to unsuspecting customers were charged in law courts after arrest by sleuths from the DCI.
The two were arrested during their last undertaking where they were attempting to steal from a businessman.
They had won the audience of the trader whom they were registering to a fake till directory and other Safaricom products when they were arrested.
The officers recovered two mobile phones, t-shirts with Safaricom labels and brands, till number and Pochi La Biashara application forms.
