Trans Nzoia senator Allan Chesang, Nyaribari Chache MP Zaheer Jhanda all elected on UDA ticket and ODM’s Lang’ata MP Felix Odiwuor aka Jalango, are persons of interest in a case in which 10 suspected gold scammers among them a police officer were on arrested following an operation by Directorate of Criminal Investigations.
Jhanda
It all started when a Tunisian national was set to be conned Sh1 billion that he was about to spend in the purchase of one tonne of fake gold that the trio had information of where and from whom it was coming from.
Trans Nzoia senator Allan Chesang
DCI boss Amin Mohammed was at the crime scene at Garden Estate along Thika Highway near Roasters, in a house belonging to a Bungoma politician and murder suspect Joseph Waswa where they impounded fake gold and dollar notes used by scammers to con unsuspecting businessmen. The house is said to have been turned into a den of the scammers for their operations.
The police officer arrested is attached to the DCI offices in Kitui and is among dozens of officers on the payroll of crooks to protect the scammers.
The Tunisian according to investigations jetted into Kenya at around 3am on Friday September 1 this year. He spent almost an hour at the airport with no person picking him.
He was convinced by a taxi driver that he would be delivered safely to his intended destination.
MP Felix Odiwuor aka Jalango
He was then driven all the way to Ngara area of Nairobi where he stayed incommunicado until Thursday that week, when he was asked to come to the Garden Estate office.
He was booked at Henneseys Hotel in Ngara next to Stima Plaza.
According to his statement, he was to pay Sh400 million before being allowed to see the gold, and after smelting and verifying a sample. He was then meant to pay the remaining Sh600 million thereafter. He however did not show up alone on the planned day.
Detectives in the company of the DCI’s tactical team raided the office, arresting 10 people; two of them, one of whom was suspected to have been armed, escaped by ripping a shade net fencing done to increase the height of the perimeter wall and allow for privacy.
It has since emerged that Senator Chesang, the MPs and senior officers in the National Police Service made frantic calls to try and free the suspects.
The scammers have operatives claiming to be government officials from police, KRA custom officers complete with fake documentation to lure unsuspecting individuals and eventually find their way out of captivity.
Police impounded items included a pistol, phones and loads of metal boxes used to store the fake money and gold which were taken to the DCI headquarters.
Jhanda was also among three politicians, a bank official and other people under probe after a Brazilian national was conned Sh11 billion in biggest gold scam ever in Kenya.
Only recently, the MP caused a stir on social media platforms after a video of him counting millions of dollars at an undisclosed place surfaced online.
The video shows the lawmaker who is also a businessman holding stacks of 100-dollar bills and counting them one by one.
Jhanda is a person of interest in the conning of the United Arab Emirates ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
According to investigators, Jhanda is said to have initiated the transaction that roped in an impersonator of CS Fred Matiang’i and an elaborate group of people both in and outside government.
Little was known about Jhanda, the flashy then 40-year-old man at the centre of the investigation but a look at his Facebook page showed him interacting with major players in the political circles.
In an undated picture, Jhanda is seen greeting Uhuru Kenyatta as the president disembarked from a military chopper. In another one, he was seen shaking hands with Raila Odinga. He is also seen with president William Ruto.
Before the fake gold seizure by detectives in Nairobi, Jhanda cut the image of a flamboyant businessman with an empire to manage.
With the large cash, Jhanda walked the Kisii political landscape like a colossus disrupting funerals to the chagrin of the bereaved.
Leaders and bereaved families used to plead with him not to leave an event before they were concluded for fears that the ceremony would end prematurely.
Jhanda of UDA broke the ethnic and clan politics of the Abagusii community to clinch the Nyaribari Chache parliamentary seat.
He garnered 31,684 votes followed by Jubilee’s Richard Tong’i who managed to get 10,039 votes.
Tong’i was defending his seat for a third term. The former Kenya Pipeline Company chairman James Kenani of ODM came third with 5,086 votes while veteran journalist, Eric Obino (Kanu) was fourth with 3529 votes.
In the judiciary where they have networks to facilitate and manage court cases, Registrar Anne Amadi is in the news.
A British gold trader has filed a petition before the Judicial Service Commission seeking to remove Amadi from office over the Sh100 million gold scam.
In the petition filed before the JSC, Demetrios Bradshaw, a director of Bruton Gold Trading LLC, wants Amadi removed from the JSC for alleged gross misconduct
Bradshaw has a pending case before the High Court seeking a refund of more than Sh100 million, allegedly paid to the law firm of Amadi and Associates, which he claims to have been defrauded in a gold scam.
Notable faces in the fake gold are Jared Otieno, Elvis Muga, Kevin Obia, Philip Aroko, Samir Munyinyi and Steve Oduk.
According to the officers, Kenyans and foreign nationals must ensure that they conduct due diligence on the people they intend to engage in the gold buying business.
Court extended orders freezing accounts of two air charter service firms linked to fake gold dealer Chris Obure.
A Nairobi court extended orders freezing bank accounts of two international private air charter services companies associated with fake gold dealer Obure over alleged money laundering of Sh18.9m.
Chief magistrate Eunice Nyutu granted the Assets Recovery Agency 21 days to carry out indepth investigations into the alleged illegal financial transactions involving US registered Cullinan Private Jet Corp Limited and GLO- Jet International Limited.
ARA was allowed to investigate the account at I&M and Eco Bank over claims of illegal bank transactions amounting to Sh18.9 million.
The court also allowed the police to investigate the bank account of Ajeetkumar C Shah held at I&M Bank.
The magistrate also allowed the two companies to challenge the freeze orders obtained by the ARA on September 1 2023.
ARA was allowed to to carry out indepth investigations into the alleged illegal financial transactions involving US-registered Cullinan Private Jet Corp Limited and GLO- Jet International Limited.
The companies together with Obure and Shah were ordered to supply the investigators with account and transaction documents covering the same period and any other documents which may assist in the ongoing probe.
Applying for the freeze orders, the ARA said that on August 25 2023, the agency received intelligence reports that the holders of the bank accounts transacted funds suspected to be proceeds of crime.
“The holders of the bank accounts in question are being investigated for the offences of money laundering contrary to Section 3 as read with Section 16 of Proceeds of Crime and Money Laundering Act,” the ARA said.
The companies through lawyer Cynthia Ogema have challenged the move by the ARA to freeze its accounts, arguing orders were obtained irregularly thereby crippling their businesses.
The court orders reportedly sparked discussion over the two air companies shutting down operations in Kenya and relocating to Johannesburg, South Africa — a move that will cost the country revenue and loss of jobs.
In an affidavit filed in court by GLO-Jet International CEO Geoffrey Somoni Birundu wants the orders vacated claiming that the company is providing exclusive private air charter services to niche and affluent foreign and local clients.
The company in Kenya, Birundu says is subsidiary of GLO- Jet International limited which is based in Orlando Florida in the USA, which constitutes a large network of global conglomerates operating in at least 47 countries across the world.
He added the company is moving huge business with a turnover of billions of dollars annually.
The local branch of the multi-national company, which is based at the upmarket Meriton Senteu Plaza located along Galana-Lenana Road in Nairobi hosts offices, a fleet of luxury cars and a signed memorandum of understanding with Penial Air to supply luxury aircraft for its clients.
Birundu said the frozen accounts are used by the firms to receive money from the mother company in the USA, payments from clients and also to make payments and or transfers for staff salaries, service providers, and payments of goods, allowances for pilots and crew plus paying for critical utility bills.
On August 14 2023, Birundu said an invoice of $55,632 was issued to Cullinan Private Jet Corp for some business.
And on August 23 2023, another $50,000 was wired to the Cillinan Dollar Account and a third tranche of $24,000 was received from the USA to settle a debt from a previous obligation.
Birundu claimed they are engaged in legitimate business and have complied with all the laws including banking, anti-money laundering, laws relating to proceeds of crime and anti-terrorism funding.
Birundu urged for court protection from harmful decisions such as the one taken by ARA.
The magistrate directed all the parties to file written submissions and evidence within three days.
She said that a ruling on whether to lift the orders or not will be delivered on September 13 2023.