A Luo man who has been posing as a senior EACC official and minting millions of shillings from many victims, including senior state officials, arrested (PHOTOs).

Friday, October 11, 2024 - Following investigations into numerous complaints from victims of extortion, EACC has arrested a suspected serial imposter who has been defrauding Kenyans while posing as the Commission's Assistant Director of Intelligence Operations.

In that fake capacity, Kennedy Ochieng Agutu has reportedly extorted millions of shillings from many victims, including senior state officials, pretending to be carrying out corruption investigations implicating them, which he promises to ''sort out."

The suspect was arrested at his hideout in South C and escorted to EACC Integrity Centre Police Station.

The Commission recovered two fake staff identification cards for EACC and an entity called Kenya Network against Corruption (Director - Intelligence & Data Survey), under the suspect's name.

 The Commission has noted an influx in the number of fraudsters posing as its detectives. In 2024 alone, the Commission has encountered over 350 cases of fake detectives conning Kenyans while pretending to be officers of EACC or other law enforcement agencies on official duty.

Some imposters, especially in Kakamega, Bungoma, and Busia counties, have established fake EACC offices and purporting to offer EACC services. For instance, an entity by the name Anti-Corruption Investigations Agency has allegedly been receiving money from the public to address corruption-related conflicts.

 Further, some imposters issue fake EACC Integrity Clearance certificates for candidates seeking employment at a fee, a service ordinarily offered by the Commission free of charge.

Others purport to carry out investigations, arrests, and search operations on their targets then demand huge bribes promising to skew the investigations in their favour or waive potential criminal charges.

Relatedly, some invade people’s business premises claiming that they are inspecting compliance with various licensing requirements or counterfeit goods. Kenyans who encounter suspicious persons should always notify EACC and avoid succumbing to such fraudulent traps.

The Kenyan DAILY POST.