Six individuals known for their sticky fingers on matters government and private land were Monday arraigned before a Milimani Chief Magistrate Court on a miscellaneous application for their continued detention to enable the DCI conclude investigations on their illegal dealings.
The suspected land fraudsters were over the weekend arrested by a multi-agency team drawn from various security agencies for forging land documents and thereafter committing land-related offences targeting public and private land in the country.
Led by the Officer-in-Charge of Land Fraud Investigations Unit at DCI Headquarters Wilhem Kimutai, detectives who have been investigating a number of reported cases implicating the six smoked them out of their operation bases persuant to court orders dated August 1, 2024 issued in the Milimani Chief Magistrates court in Nairobi.
Benedict Mwangangi Ngala and Joel Kaluki Mwangangi were arrested at Anpemu House along Ngara Road, whereas Sylvester Mwanzia Mwanthi and Erick Omondi Ojwang were nabbed while in the process of delivering several copies of suspicious title deeds to the first two suspects.
Casting their nets wider, the detectives managed to hook into their dragnet another suspect identified as Vincent Boaz Owang at a Nairobi restraint, thereafter pouncing on his comrade in crime, Titus Wambua Kithuku, at NCBA Center along Ragati Road/Mara Road junction.
Search was conducted in the the suspects’ business premises, residential houses and vehicles where a trove of forged documents including assorted copies of green cards, transfers of land, certificates of titles, surrenders, certificates of leases, letters of allotment, certificates of titles, deed plans, correspondence letters and idents to and from directors of survey, land administration, Chief Land Registrar, assorted registry index maps among others were confiscated.
Additionally, the detectives recovered assorted flash discs, rubber stamps, stamp pads, mobile phones, printers, CPUs among other items of interest.
The gang of six was taken back to the cells awaiting ruling on the application scheduled for August 6, 2024 at noon before Chief Magistrate Bernard Ochoi.
Police said the suspects are part of a land cartel involved in defrauding Kenyans of their genuine parcels through changing ownership in both the physical files and the digital platform using fake documents.
“They receive instructions from different clients among them rogue brokers and rogue ministry of land officials who direct them to print fake documents and append signatures and stamps of ministry officials without their knowledge,” indicated Kimutai.
The most targeted parcels include prime undeveloped parcels, those owned by foreigners, the elderly and the deceased.
Once the brokers have the targeted parcels at hand, they then engage the suspects to prepare and print fake land documents.
Thereafter the brokers engage some rogue ministry staff to insert the fake documents into the physical files and once that is done they upload the fake documents into the Ardhi Sasa Platform.
While this process is ongoing, the brokers have already identified a buyer and once the fake documents are uploaded to the ardhi sasa platform, the buyer can conduct a search and by then ownership will have changed.
In cases where the parcel is not for immediate sale, the brokers transfer the parcels to themselves using proxy individuals or proxy companies.
These brokers are well known within the Ministry of lands with one of them fond of name dropping as a way of commanding respect within the ministry, he said.
During the arrest one of the suspects swallowed his memory card so as to conceal evidence.
Another suspect ran away from the scene while delivering title for printing while leaving his documents and phone at the scene.
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