EACC arrests 'fake' NIS officer in Ksh.15M school dormitory tender scam

Detectives from the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) have arrested a suspect for allegedly impersonating a National Intelligence Service (NIS) officer to orchestrate a Ksh.15 million tender fraud scheme.

The suspect, identified as Joel Wanyama Simiyu, was arrested by officers from the EACC Central Nyanza Regional Office in Kisumu on March 25, 2026, following a report linked to a fraudulent construction project at Kaptis Primary Special School in Hamisi, Vihiga County.

According to EACC, the fraudulent scheme began in early July 2025 when Simiyu approached the management of Empiregrid Builders Ltd at a hotel in Chavakali.

“Presenting himself as a powerful NIS officer attached to the National CDF Board with high-level influence over government contracts, Simiyu promised to facilitate the award of tenders for the construction of two school dormitories,” EACC Head of Corporate Affairs Stephen Karuga stated.

To make the scheme appear legitimate, the suspect allegedly recruited an accomplice from the Hamisi NG-CDF office to stage a formal project site handover ceremony.

“This event, attended by unsuspecting school board members and the Principal, concluded with the signing of forged contract documents and a celebratory launch of the construction works, all while the construction firm remained under the impression they were dealing with a legitimate government-sanctioned process,” EACC noted.

The deception is said to have continued during the implementation phase after the contractor flagged gaps in the Bill of Quantities.

When these concerns were raised, Simiyu allegedly dispatched a fake ‘Engineer’ who instructed the company to proceed with unauthorised design changes, promising that costs would be recovered during the invoicing stage.

EACC further revealed that the suspect demanded and received facilitation fees amounting to about Ksh.1.4 million from the contractor.

The scheme unravelled when the construction reached the lintel stage and the firm sought interim payments from the Hamisi NG-CDF, only to discover that no such project existed.

To their dismay, EACC says the NG-CDF officials revealed they had no record of the project and had never awarded such a contract. Simiyu later resurfaced in March 2026, claiming that the National Treasury had taken over the payments and demanded an additional bribe.

The daring suspect again demanded a further bribe of Ksh.20,000 to ‘process’ the funds in Nairobi, warning that failure to pay would result in the debt being sidelined as a pending bill.

EACC officers subsequently mounted an operation that led to his arrest while allegedly receiving the bribe.

He was booked at Kisumu Central Police Station before being released on a cash bail of Ksh.20,000 as investigations continue to identify possible accomplices and establish the full extent of the alleged procurement fraud network in the region.