A man who police say is one of the country’s most sought-after fraudsters involved in the 2024 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examination malpractices was arrested in Kiamunyi area, Nakuru.
The suspect was identified as Collins Kipchumba Kemboi but he had been operating in the guise of a female namely Dorothy Jerop Kiprono.
Detectives said the 23-year-old man had become the nightmare of Kenya National Examination Council (KNEC) officials, having mobilized a following of over 78,000 exam leakage seekers in his Telegram account and over 8,500 in his WhatsApp groups.
It is however not clear how and where he got the KCSE materials he has been distributing on his channels.
Detectives are investigating the saga.
In an all-out war to curb the unbecoming practice of cheating, detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) attached to KNEC jointly with their Nakuru County counterparts sharpened their claws on the miscreant, pouncing on him like a cornered rat at his abode in Kiamunyi.
The detectives had no business turning the house upside down in search of evidence, as Kemboi was caught pants down with his tools of trade right on the table.
His key asset – an Infinix Hot 10 Lite phone – used to fleece unsuspecting grade-seekers was confiscated, alongside several SIM cards, national IDs bearing different names and a driving license.
Probing further, the detectives established that Kemboi is a graduate of a Kenyan university, holding a Bachelor of Arts in Human Resource Management.
He is also employed as a salesperson by an international company and has his roots in Kaseta area of Sacho in Baringo County.
After a bad day in office, Kemboi is now cooling his heels at Nakuru Central Police Station cells, staring at charges of fraud and unauthorized possession of examination materials.
Multi-agency teams are involved in operations to address cases of national exam leaks.
They have since arrested dozens of people including teachers and other officials.
As part of the efforts, the authorities have banned the use of mobile phones in examination centres.
Communication authorities also ordered the closure of Telegram for some hours when the exams are ongoing as part of efforts to tame the cheating.
This inconvenienced many who rely on the social media channel for other businesses.
