The Fraudster’s Political Gambit: ‘Wash Wash’ Kingpin Bruno Liende Eyes Junet’s Seat

In a stunning display of audacity that has shocked political circles, notorious gold scam mastermind Bruno Otieno Oliende is mounting a well-financed campaign to unseat ODM’s National Assembly Minority Leader Junet Mohamed in Suna East constituency.

Operating under multiple aliases including Elijah Murenzi Maliba, Joseph Lugansa, and Brian Otieno Oliende/Liende, the controversial figure has been implicated in a staggering web of gold scams that have defrauded foreign investors of hundreds of millions of Kenyan shillings.

A Criminal Empire Built on Deception

Court records reveal that Oliende’s criminal operations read like a playbook for high-stakes fraud. In 2023, he was arrested and charged alongside politician Seth Steve Okute for allegedly defrauding American investor Marjorie Grant of KSh12.7 million.

Steve Okute.

The pair convinced Grant to wire funds supposedly for customs duties on a 33-kilogram gold consignment from Burkina Faso – gold that never existed.

This case was merely the visible tip of a massive criminal iceberg.

DCI investigations uncovered that Oliende and his associates had defrauded at least two American citizens of a combined KSh66.7 million.

When authorities raided his luxurious properties in Kitusuru and Kilimani, they discovered fake gold bars, counterfeit foreign currency, and meticulously forged documents – all tools of his elaborate trade.

The Chinese Connection: A KSh727 Million Heist

Perhaps most brazen was Oliende’s 2020 swindle of Chinese businessman Chui Bing Sung, who lost an astonishing KSh727 million in what was pitched as a multi-country gold acquisition deal.

Court documents detail how Oliende, posing as a Congolese businessman named Elijah Murenzi Maliba, claimed to be director of “Ngeweshe Mining Company Limited” – a fictional DRC-based enterprise.

Sung was persuaded to wire KSh10 million for 105 kilograms of gold supposedly coming from DRC, followed by a staggering KSh597 million deposited in 17 separate tranches into escrow accounts.

“Despite making the above payments into the two escrow accounts held by the first and third interested parties (National Bank and Credit Bank), the plaintiffs are yet to receive a refund or profit from the various investments in the gold business or any of the gold consignments from the DRC,” Sung stated in his court submission.

In a crushing blow to Sung, investigations revealed that Oliende had falsified his DRC passport and fabricated documents purportedly from the DRC embassy in Kenya.

The entire operation was a sophisticated mirage.

The Political Cleansing Strategy

Sources close to Oliende indicate that his political aspirations are far from genuine.

This isn’t his first attempt at political office – he previously contested the Suna East parliamentary seat as an independent candidate in the 2022 general elections and failed.

“Like many of his ilk, Bruno hopes to get to parliament to gain immunity and continue with his rather fraudulent gold scams that has landed him in courts,” revealed a source familiar with his operations.

His campaign strategy is simple yet effective: deploy his ill-gotten millions to fund a lavish campaign operation aimed at buying legitimacy and public favor.

Liende sees parliamentary immunity as a shield against his mounting legal troubles, and his constituency as a potential new hunting ground for his scam operations.

What’s particularly alarming is Oliende’s ability to mount a serious challenge against a political heavyweight like Junet Mohamed.

Junet Mohamed

His campaign is described as “well-oiled” – a euphemism for the vast sums of questionable money being poured into winning over voters.

A Threat to Kenya’s Image

As Kenya struggles to shed its growing reputation as a global hotspot for gold-related fraud, Oliende’s political aspirations represent a dangerous evolution in how criminal elements are infiltrating the country’s political system.

“This man has no known legitimate business dealings apart from gold scamming scandals that have plagued his public image,” noted a political observer familiar with Suna East politics.

“His attempt to enter parliament is nothing but a cynical move to cleanse his tarnished image.”

For voters in Suna East, the choice now becomes whether to elect a representative with a documented history of international fraud schemes and multiple pending court cases, or to maintain the status quo with their current representative.

As this political drama unfolds, one thing remains clear: Bruno Liende’s campaign represents a troubling intersection of Kenya’s criminal underworld with its political establishment – a junction that threatens both the integrity of the country’s democratic processes and its international reputation.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​