A Spanish influencer who goes by the name Melinda Lucy has opened up about how she lost KSh 30 million to a Kenyan man she was in a romantic relationship with, detailing a months-long scheme that she says left her financially devastated.
Melinda shared her story in a series of posts after her followers repeatedly asked what had happened with her Kenyan ex-boyfriend.
“Everybody keeps asking, so let me tell you once and for all,” she wrote.
“I didn’t lose 30 million in a casino. I lost it to love.”
She described meeting the man in Nairobi and being immediately taken in by his charm.
“Charming, God-fearing, well-spoken. The kind of guy your mum would love,” she wrote, adding that he spoke of building a future together and eventually relocating to her home country.
How was Melinda Lucy allegedly conned?
According to Melinda, the financial dimension of the relationship began around the sixth month, when her then-boyfriend encouraged her to invest rather than keep her money idle in the bank.
She started with KSh 500,000, which came back with profit. A second investment of KSh 2 million also returned gains.
Then came the larger pitch.
He told her about five acres of land in Kajiado that needed to be secured quickly before a foreign investor snapped it up.
“Babe, we need KSh 30 million. If we flip it, we make KSh 45 million in 60 days. This is our chance to change our lives forever,” he reportedly told her.
She transferred the full amount. The day after the transfer, she says his phone went silent for three hours, followed by a string of excuses about meetings in Mombasa and a seller causing delays. A week later, she visited the site herself.
“The owner looked at me like I was crazy,” she recalled. “‘This land is not for sale, and I don’t know that man.'”
Melinda reports to DCI
In the aftermath, Melinda says she cried for two weeks before taking action.
“Then I went to the DCI. Then I contacted a lawyer,” she wrote, adding that she does not expect to recover the full amount but is grateful for progress made so far.
She also noted the wider impact of the loss, saying the money had previously been used to support a children’s feeding programme run through her late mother’s foundation.
Kenyans online weighed in on the story with a mix of sympathy and blunt humour:
@2mbili:
“Every relationship has a thief; just give it time.”
@nolmind:
“No one is above program.”
@budublash:
“That’s so bad.”
@coolkid_x_don_:
“Sharp boys everywhere.”
