Exposed: Tricks Used By Nairobi Fake Gold Fraudsters to Scam Foreigners

Nairobi, Kenya – When Italian-based investor Dr. Satninder Singh appeared virtually before a Nairobi court, his testimony peeled back the curtain on a multi-million shilling swindle that fits a well-worn script in Kenya’s fake gold underworld.

Singh told Senior Principal Magistrate Robinson Ondieki that he was lured into a deal for 150 kilograms of gold, only to lose more than €2 million (Sh342 million) and USD 14,112 to an elaborate web of forged documents, staged officials, and false promises.

At first, the transaction looked genuine. Singh was shown a certificate of ownership dated April 9, 2024, and a mineral export permit purportedly issued by the Ministry of Mining on February 9.

Both documents bore his name and passport number, convincing him the deal was authentic.

But when he arrived at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) for the supposed export, he was told that the Kenya Revenue Authority had suddenly imposed a penalty of USD 1.62 million.

The consignment, he was warned, would be confiscated unless the money was paid within a week.

Reluctantly, he paid. To strengthen the illusion, the fraudsters took him to Forodha House, where he was introduced to a woman presented as a senior customs officer. She produced a file with his details and confirmed the penalty. “That erased my doubts,” Singh testified.

He wired €256,000, presented proof of payment at a Nairobi law firm, and then sent more transfers totaling over €2 million.

Each time, new obstacles were introduced. At one point he was told of a Congolese court order demanding USD 4.5 million before the gold could be released. The shipment never materialized.

The three accused – Frank David Kateti, Alain Mwadia Nvita Lukusa, and Daniel Otieno Ogot – have since been arrested and charged with obtaining money by false pretenses, forgery, and conspiracy to steal. They have denied the charges.

What happened to Singh is no isolated case.

Nairobi has become synonymous with fake gold scams, which surface every few years and often involve foreign victims losing millions of dollars.

In 2019, the scandal involving a Dubai royal shocked the region, with leaked phone calls dragging the names of senior Kenyan politicians into the fray.

Though no convictions followed, it underlined how fraudsters thrive by creating the impression of powerful protection.

Investigators say the methods rarely change.

Victims are shown forged export permits and certificates, taken to real government offices where imposters pose as customs officers, and then squeezed for last-minute taxes.

Money is often routed through law firms to make the transactions look legitimate. A senior officer at the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), speaking on background, said: “These scams are theatre. Every actor plays a role — the broker, the lawyer, the fake officer — and the victim doesn’t realise they are watching a performance until the curtain falls and their money is gone.”

Analysts warn that Kenya’s image is at stake. Governance expert John Githongo once remarked that the persistence of these scams highlights a “toxic nexus” between fraud networks and elements of the state.

“Every year, a new victim falls for the same tricks. The question is not why foreigners are duped — it’s why the cartels continue to operate with such impunity,” he said in a past interview.

International watchdogs have also weighed in. A 2023 report by the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organised Crime documented how Nairobi’s fake gold syndicates use fake nuggets, counterfeit seals, and even XRF scanners to deceive buyers.

It concluded that the trade is “a sophisticated criminal enterprise that feeds off gaps in enforcement and thrives on the complicity of insiders.”

Despite repeated crackdowns, prosecutions often stall, and the same networks resurface under new names. For Kenya, the costs are more than financial.

The country’s credibility as a regional hub for trade and investment takes a hit every time a new case makes headlines. Diplomatic tensions, such as those sparked by the 2019 Dubai saga, risk resurfacing with each new victim.

Back in court, Singh’s testimony has become part of that wider story.

His millions may never be recovered, but his account has once again spotlighted a fraud industry that has survived police raids, court cases, and international embarrassment. Whether this case will finally pierce the armor of Nairobi’s gold cartels remains to be seen.