Detectives drawn from the Operations Support Unit Saturday December 7 arrested one Steve Okoth Odek alias David Bett, for scamming a foreign national a staggering USD 256,000 (Sh32 million) in a fake gold deal that involved over 500 kilograms of fake gold.
Investigations revealed that the victim entered into two separate gold purchase agreements with the scammer where on February 6, 2024 he was to purchase 500kg of gold and on March 14, 2024 another 580kg with each kilogram priced at USD 40,000.
Additionally, the detectives established that the second contract was signed after the first deal failed where the scammer promised to deliver the gold only after securing certain conditions, including the buyer’s responsibility for jet chartering, payment of taxes and insurance.
Despite these terms, the scammer once more failed to deliver the gold and in an attempt to keep the scam going, he provided 20kg of “gold bars” as collateral, which were stored at MySafe Vault.
At this point, the victim remained unaware that he was being scammed, and ended up paying a total of USD256,000 through two law firms; Owano & Associates Advocates ($126,000) and Alata & Co. Advocates ($139,200).
After receiving the money, the scammer attempted to defraud the foreign national an additional USD188,080 which failed as his fraudulent dealings had been uncovered and a report made to the police.
Swinging into action, the detectives have burned the midnight oil to uncover the truth, recovering the 20kg of “gold” that had been provided as collateral.
A thorough analysis revealed that the bars were composed of copper, zinc, and tin, with no trace of gold but just a well-executed scam.
Further investigation revealed that the seller’s company, PCL Natural Resources Limited, was not licensed by the Ministry of Mining to deal with gold or any precious metals.
With this crucial information, the detectives were able to track down the scammer, Steve Okoth Odek, who was arrested and processed earlier pending arraigment.
Director DCI Mohammed Amin implored on members of the public to remain alert when engaging in the so called gold bussiness as it has been established that fake gold merchants are once again trying to establish their foothold in the capital city.
Dozens of the fake gold dealers have been arrested in a series of police operations in the country. This is the latest such case involving Kenyans and foreigners who are conned over fake gold scams.
Cases where foreigners are being conned or money over fake gold on sale are on the rise.
Police have been asking foreigners seeking to purchase gold in the country to always seek the help of their respective embassies.
Police say they have arrested dozens involved in the cases and charged them in courts.
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