A boda boda rider and a school leaver who allegedly defrauded more than 200 people through 14 fake Facebook accounts of Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua’s wife have been charged with fraud.
The two suspects, Blaise Wafula Nabiswa, 22, and Jacklyne Tokesi, 20, while masquerading as the spouse of the Deputy President, unlawfully obtained Sh282,000 from their victims in a bogus loan scheme in which they purported to be offering academic scholarships, education loans, soft financial loans and job opportunities.
State Prosecutor Anderson Gikunda told the Milimani Law Courts that the accused persons defrauded their victims of millions of shillings through a fraudulent loans scheme allegedly run by Dorcus Gachagua, contrary to Section 38 (2) of Computer Misuse and Cybercrime Act, 2018.
The 14 fake Facebook accounts have huge following as the least has 7,000 followers and the highest 27,000 followers.
The accused persons also face a second count of conspiring to commit an offence and the third count of obtaining money fraudulently.
Mr Gikunda told Chief Magistrate Lucas Onyina that the actual amounts fraudulently obtained from unsuspecting loan applicants will be disclosed at the trial as police are compiling the figures.
Mr Gikunda further said the two cybercrime suspects have been collecting small amounts of money from “their clients” which have run into a colossal sum. He sought to have the accused persons remanded until Friday for bail application, but did not oppose the two suspects being admitted to bond.
A defence lawyer urged the court to direct the two accused persons to be remanded at Central Police Station from where they will be presented in court for further judicial processing.
But the magistrate declined, asking the defence lawyer whether he has ever been held for a night in a police cell to which the lawyer responded in the negative.
“May I inform you that prison custody is the place to detain suspects. These days they sleep in beds and even watch TV after eating their 5pm meals,” Mr Onyina said.
Th two denied all the three offences and were remanded in prison until Friday when they will be produced before the court for a bail application.
