News
Fake Gold Scammer Jonathan Okoth Opande Charged In Court
A politician has been charged with conspiracy to defraud a Thai national of millions in a fake gold deal.
Jonathan Okoth Opande alias Okoth Magawi, who contested the Nyakach parliamentary seta in the last general election appeared before Makadara Magistrate and denied the charge.
Opande is accused of conspiracy to steal US dollars on diverse dates between 18th and 27th April 2023 jointly with others not before court, with intent to defraud.
The charge stated that they conspired to steal the millions from Kitwisit Songsri, a Thai National by purporting that they were in a position to sell to him 3kg of gold.
He was released on a bond of Sh500,000 or alternative cash bail of Sh100, 000 pending hearing and determination of the criminal case.
The case will be heard next year February.
A report by the police posted on the DCI-Kenya official page on social media, Opande was arrested after escaping several police dragnets in the past few months.
DCI further indicated that Opande also known as Chairman/Kiongozi was ejected from a Kisumu-bound KQ flight yesterday afternoon, by hawk-eyed detectives who had gotten wind of his last minute travel itinerary.
The suspect who unsuccessfully vied for the parliamentary seat, has allegedly been engaging detectives in cat and mouse games in connection to a case where he defrauded two Thai nationals of over Sh13 million, in a fake gold deal.
A complaint lodged at the Royal Thai Embassy in April this year by Messrs Kitvisit Songsri and Nutsaphol Songsri, the suspect posing as the CEO of Blu Afrique LTD obtained the money from them in the pretext that he would supply them gold whose quantity was not immediately established.
The two foreigners had traveled to the country on April 17 to seal the deal when they realized days later that they were the latest victims of Nairobi’s notorious fake gold dealers.
DCI further added that a raid at the main suspect’s office in Lavington’s Gatina area led to the recovery of KRA export seals, a dust coat branded Ministry of Mining and digital weighing scales among other crucial exhibits.
Kenya Insights allows guest blogging, if you want to be published on Kenya’s most authoritative and accurate blog, have an expose, news TIPS, story angles, human interest stories, drop us an email on [email protected] or via Telegram
Air Canada Pilot Flew Passengers For Years With A Fake Pilot’s License, Police Say
Itumbi Claims Kalonzo Has Settled on Sifuna as Running Mate
THE KURIA NETWORK TAKES THE BOARDROOM: How Moses Kuria’s Inner Circle Seized Control of Africa Mega Agricorp And the Paper Trail That Links It All
Who Is The Somali Referee Barred From Entering The US For The World Cup?
Inside NCBA’s Decline: How a Banking Giant Lost Its Strategic Edge
Shiquo wa Hii Style Counts Costly Lesson After Anti-Counterfeit Raid Wipes Out Shop Stock
“Are They Giving Kickbacks To Government Officials?” The Scandalous Record Behind Kenya’s Most Favoured Chinese Contractor
Two MPs Defrauded of Sh93.5 Million in Karen Land Scam
Gachagua Rejects Sh50 Million Court Compensation, Calls It An Insult
Ghost Firm, Ghost Justice: Two Judges Fingered In KETRACO’S Sh10 Billion Scandal
Cement, Cash and Courts: How the Hashu Dynasty Crushed the Ramji Brothers for Fourteen Years and Why the Walls Are Now Closing In
Inside The Urban Planning Cartel That Owns Nairobi
Why Ruto’s Favourite Candidate Adan Mohammed Could Be Locked Out of the KRA Top Job
LifeCare on the Brink: SHA Fraud, Stolen Wages, and the Rotten Empire Jayesh Saini Built
Este Medical Kenya Fights American’s Explosive Complaints
Betika Faces DCI Probe, Directors Arrest and License Revocation Over Massive 29.5 Million Safaricom Customers’ Data Breach
The Rot Inside Absa: How Bank Insiders Are Looting Nairobi’s Customers
Inside FAFSA Fraud: How Kenyan Cybercriminals Siphoned Millions from America’s Sh12 Billion Student Loan System
Fresh Move Launched to Remove Kenya Railways MD Mainga From Office After Awarding Sh817 Million Consultancy Contract
Court Confirms Safaricom Customers Data Was Sold To Betting Companies In Seven-Year Cover-Up
-
Investigations5 days agoCement, Cash and Courts: How the Hashu Dynasty Crushed the Ramji Brothers for Fourteen Years and Why the Walls Are Now Closing In
-
Investigations4 days agoInside The Urban Planning Cartel That Owns Nairobi
-
Investigations1 week agoBetika Faces DCI Probe, Directors Arrest and License Revocation Over Massive 29.5 Million Safaricom Customers’ Data Breach
-
Investigations5 days agoFresh Move Launched to Remove Kenya Railways MD Mainga From Office After Awarding Sh817 Million Consultancy Contract
-
News2 weeks agoEight Students Arrested In Kenya After Suspected Deadly School Arson Attack
-
News1 week agoHow Uhuru’s Deal With Obama In 2015 Paved Way For America’s Ebola Plan In Kenya
-
Business6 days agoTRUST BETRAYED: How Senior DTB Bank Insiders Allegedly Looted Sh149 Million From a Customer’s Account Over Five Years
-
Investigations4 days agoWhy Drivers Cheered Bolt’s Reported Exit: Inside the Slow Financial Strangulation of Thousands of Kenyan Drivers and Riders in Kenya