The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) announced today that Rafael Ojiambo, Samuel Ayako, and Wilfred Gitonga, all of Nairobi City County, were arrested and will be charged by criminal complaint with theft by fraudulent means, possession of a forged instrument in the first degree, and conspiracy to manufacture and pass counterfeit United States currency. The charges carry a penalty of not less than seven years in prison.
The DCI detectives handling the case stated that they arrested the three along Nyerere Road, Nairobi, just in time before one unsuspecting citizen fell into their trap of trickery.
“Rafael Ojiambo, Samuel Ayako, and Wilfred Gitonga’s proverbial 40 days came to an abrupt end along Nyerere Road when the detectives got wind of their mischief,” the investigators said in a statement. “The three, who had already begun counting their luck, were stopped in their tracks while handing over a safe containing 1.2 million fake US dollars to the victim in an attempt to obtain clean money.”
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According to the detectives, the arrested individuals are suspected to be part of the “wash wash” gang, who drench honest money in toxic waters, washing away its modest form to clothe it in a robe of deceitful opulence.
Typically, such counterfeit artists usually first etch intricate money designs into metal plates and hunt for paper that mimics the soul of honest currency, then, with scanners, printers and toner ink, pretend they can create money where once there was none.
Although currency counterfeiting is not a common phenomenon in Kenya, the DCI has emphasised that “individual vigilance” is essential in fighting their circulation and added that real-time information sharing is also crucial in the quick response and arrest of culprits.
Meanwhile, the car that the suspects were using, a Toyota NZE, Reg. No. KBN 101D, which was ferrying the safe containing the fake dollars, was impounded. The safe and its contents have been kept as exhibits, while the three remain locked up at Kilimani Police Station pending further investigations.
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