Foreigner among 5 arrested in overseas job recruitment scam

Five suspects, including a foreigner, have been arrested for allegedly orchestrating a fraudulent overseas job recruitment drive in Nairobi.

The five namely Nick Van Opstal (foreigner), Samuel Marigi, Patrick Wangai, Susan Oluoch and Christine Muthoni Wangechi were nabbed by detectives from the Nairobi Regional headquarters while conducting the recruitment exercise at the KCB Sports Club in Ruaraka.

The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), in a statement on Saturday, revealed that the sleuths who were acting on a tip-off from the public raided the premises of the suspects where 1,000 jobseekers were saved from being conned.

The suspects had been using two recruitment agencies namely Alhanawa Jobs and Supply Link Ventures Limited to dupe unsuspecting members of the public.

“They were arrested following a tip-off from the public about activities of two suspicious recruitment agencies namely Alhanawa Jobs and Supply Link Ventures Ltd who were purporting to be recruiting for overseas jobs at KCB sports club grounds,” DCI stated.

“Following the swift response by the detectives, approximately 1000 jobseekers were snatched from the fangs of the snake oil merchants whose sole mission was to fleece them off their hard-earned cash.”

The DCI said preliminary investigations revealed that the culprits were undertaking their operations despite the National Employment Authority (NEA) having flagged the recruitment as a scam.

A manhunt for three other suspects identified as Hannah Mbugua, Gladys Oluasa and Lucy Wanjiru who escaped during the raid is underway.

The DCI has appealed to the public to remain vigilant and report such suspicious agencies to the police for action.