This archive report was first published on 7 July 2021.
On July 7, 2021, detectives from the Crime Research and Intelligence Bureau arrested three individuals, including Teachers Service Commission Principal Accountant Jeremiah Musyoka Lawrence Mumo, for leaking teachers' sensitive information to a cartel.
The suspects, who include Japheth Kyalo and Nathaniel Kanyagia Jambuya, were arraigned in court where custodial orders were granted to hold them for 14 more days as investigations continue.
According to a statement from the DCI, the cartel operated three major cons which targeted TSC applicants, headteachers, and principals, as well as retiring teachers.
One of the gang's victims lost Sh 700,000 after he was approached by one of the conmen and was enticed into taking a loan from a Nairobi-based shylock.
Unbeknownst to the retiree, the scammers took his personal details and used them to open an account bearing his name at a bank in Webuye.
The details were then shared with the rogue officials at the pension department who processed his pension and wired it to the account. However, the money was immediately reverted to an account operated from Nairobi, where it was withdrawn.
The court was told that Musyoka had been accessing teachers' personal information discreetly, before sharing it with the cons.
He accessed the database and fished out details of prospective teachers who had made applications, then shared the information with cons who used a fake TSC CEO account to lure unsuspecting applicants.
Confronted with the leaked information about them, the applicants fell for the trap hook, line, and sinker, then asked to part with hundreds of thousands of shillings to secure opportunities.
