This archive report was first published on 2 July 2019.
On July 2, 2019, a court in Eldoret, Kenya, sentenced a former bank employee to three years in prison for stealing Sh4 million from a client's account.
Timothy Kosgei, a former employee of the Co-operative Bank in Eldoret Town, was found guilty of making unauthorized withdrawals from a bank account belonging to Anne Jepkemboi.
According to the prosecution, Kosgei used his password to access Jepkemboi's account and withdrew the money without her knowledge or consent.
Jepkemboi had deposited Sh3 million into her account in July 2016, which she used to pay school fees for her children and sent Sh700,000 to her mother-in-law.
She then invested the remaining Sh2 million in a Treasury bill, which matured to an interest of Sh30,000 in October 2016. However, upon maturity, she realized that the money had disappeared.
Following an internal investigation by the bank, it was discovered that Kosgei had used his password to access Jepkemboi's account and withdrew the money.
In his defense, Kosgei claimed that it was impossible for such a huge amount to be withdrawn without authorization, citing internal control mechanisms in place.
However, the prosecution argued that the evidence presented demonstrated that Kosgei had made an unauthorized access to Jepkemboi's account and stole the cash.
Senior Principal Magistrate Harrison Barasa found the prosecution's case to be proven beyond reasonable doubt and convicted Kosgei to three years' imprisonment.
