Despite facing multiple legal battles and ongoing investigations into a series of gold-related scams, flamboyant businessman Nahashon Otieno Angundha remains undeterred in his fraudulent activities. Angundha has been linked to another scam where he and his associates allegedly defrauded two Dubai-based businessmen.
On Tuesday, detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) conducted a series of raids, arresting 31 suspects in connection to the fraudulent dealings.
The suspects, posing as legitimate precious metal dealers, tricked the victims into purchasing coated base metals instead of gold. After several trips to Kenya, the victims became suspicious when the 35kg of gold they had bought failed to be exported as promised. They reported the scam, leading to a DCI investigation that uncovered fake gold, vehicles, counterfeit government documents, and more.
Angundha, described as the mastermind behind the syndicate, is already facing two other similar cases in court. On the same day, he was charged with conspiracy to defraud and robbery with violence, alongside two co-defendants. They are accused of luring an Australian man and his Ugandan wife to Kenya, where they were attacked and robbed of USD 60,000 and valuable jewellery.
Further investigations into Angundha’s activities have also revealed involvement in more fraudulent schemes. One case involves a forged letter from a company claiming that a gold sample was 97.6% pure, which later turned out to contain mostly copper. Additional investigations are focused on fraudulent documents and the suspect’s potential ties to a company that allegedly sold gold to a foreigner via Malawi.
As the DCI continues its probe, they are examining the role of several Nairobi-based lawyers, some of whom are suspected of facilitating these gold scams despite assuring clients of the legitimacy of the transactions.
In response to these ongoing fraud cases, the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) has agreed to report suspicious transactions to the Financial Reporting Centre (FRC) to combat the rising cases of fraud in the industry.
