How Kenyans' thirst for European and US varsity education attracts swindlers

 

He crisscrossed schools across the country for years, as a charismatic motivational speaker.

His words flowed with a persuasive certainty promising hope and a future of overseas education and job opportunities for thousands of Kenyan students.

With oratory prowess, he reassured his audiences that their dreams of studying abroad would soon become reality.

Students, parents, and even school head teachers fell for his charm and the allure of life-changing scholarships.

But behind the promise and motivation stood a man accused of orchestrating one of Kenya's major education scams.

Javan Ochieng used his organisation-Kenya Networks Management, or Kenema to lure over 3,000 students across the country.

Ochieng’s actions have shattered dreams, ruined aspirations, and left families drowning in debt.

"He had a way with words you couldn’t help but believe him," recalls Victor Mwangi, one of the students who became a victim of the con game.

"He seemed so genuine, so convincing."

By the time the truth unravelled, it was too late. What had been sold as a golden opportunity to study in top-tier institutions abroad in countries like the US, UK, and Canada had turned out to be an elaborate scam.

The promised scholarships and visas never materialised.

Parents and students, who had collectively parted with huge amounts of money are still grappling with the aftermath of the betrayal.

Some of those familiar with Kenema operations said the figure could be more than Sh1.04 billion while others say it is Sh156 million and an insider said the figure could be not more than Sh40 million.

However, records at the Buruburu Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) office, show that the total amount from the reported cases is Sh54 million.

Kenema’s office, once buzzing with hopeful students, now stands abandoned.

And Ochieng, the man at the center of it all, vanished without a trace.

Mwangi said that he first heard about Kenema in 2021, and little did he know that in a short period, he would lose more than Sh436,000.

He had just cleared his secondary school education and was working as a shopkeeper along Jogoo Road.

“They said that the money we were giving was facilitation fee for the student once they go abroad and down payment for the institutions they will be admitted to,” he said.

His father was not convinced about the plan but he would later agree to pay the money.

On the first day, they paid Sh235,000 in two transactions of Sh130,000 and Sh105,000, and on the second day, they paid Sh180,000 in two transactions of Sh90,000 each.

These transactions are in our possession.

The money was a loan they secured from a financial institution.

“I was told to join French classes at the institution since I wanted to travel to Canada and they said that the country speaks some French,” Mwangi said.

During the French lessons, he heard from other students that the institution was conning people but Ochieng assured them that they would leave the country soon.

The Paradizo Center which hosted Kenema offices along Outering Road in Kariobangi South today is empty save for a petrol station that is below the building.

According to victims Ochieng used religion, motivation and mentorship as well as the mainstream media to spread the scholarship’s gospel at a discounted price.

He told students that they needed to contribute some money for visa processing and other travel expenses while other funds would go towards tuition fees.

For most, the blind spot was that they did not have the pressure to finish the payments, but they were aware that the earlier they finished paying the faster they would travel.

The institution also had offices in Buruburu, Nairobi, Kisii, Kericho, Mombasa, and Kakamega counties.

Mwangi said they were asked to take the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) test in October 2021 where they were to pay Sh2,000 for the tutor and exam.

IELTS was to be tested in an oral exam, and a written one, and thereafter everyone went their way.

In November, he received a call from the institution asking him to pay Sh20,000 for upkeep.

Mwangi received Covid-19 vaccination certificate and was asked to get a Yellow Fever jab since they were about to leave the country.

He reported the matter to Buruburu Police Station in February 2022 and it was taken to the DCI department.

Mwangi has never updates on the matter.

Wellington Kiplimo’s first encounter with Ochieng was at St Joseph's Boys High School Kitale where he gave a motivational talk.

At the time he was in Form Four and the students were getting advice on different career paths and issued with certificates, with the promise of a scholarship.

They were also told that the scholarship would only cost them Sh400,000 including the cost of the flight.

After clearing school, he was told to learn at least one foreign language and he picked French.

Kiplimo was asked to undertake IELTS but would be required to pay Sh100,000 to register as a Kenema member.

After this, he was told to get a passport.

In one of the meetings, Ochieng told Kiplimo’s father that everyone needed to pay an additional Sh200,000 but for his case he would only part with Sh100,000.

“I paid Sh65,000 from to get a MacBook laptop,” he said.

After getting all his documents right he was offered a Covid-19 certificate bearing his name and showing that he had been vaccinated yet he had not received a jab.

“They gave us a list of schools to choose from depending on your grade,” he said.

In his cohort, they waited for three months after which they were called for a meeting and were told that their visas were ready but would need to pay an additional Sh40,000 to be deposited in two different accounts.

“They told us the scholarships would cater for part of our flight costs hence the Sh40,000 fee.”

On top of the Sh305,000 that he sent to Kenema, Kiplimo had to relocate to Ruaka where he was paying Sh24,000 rent to be able to take the lessons.

After waiting for months, they were given air tickets and told to get ready to fly out but days to the due date they could not get hold of Ochieng.

“We later heard rumours that Ochieng had fled and that the school would be closed down.”

Kiplimo recorded a statement with the police but so far there is no progress on the matter.

He later learned that Ochieng had registered his phone numbers using other people’s identity cards.

“I think I got depressed. I had to buy another laptop and use the essentials that I had purchased for the travels, I had even organised a farewell party,” he said

Mary Wambui is also among those who lost money to Ochieng.

She said that she met Ochieng at yet another motivational talk at Dandora Secondary School, just as she was about to sit for her Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education exam.

“He said that his institution was offering short courses so that when we finish school, we will not stay idle as we decide what we want to do,” she said.

Wambui said Ochieng told them that he was orphaned and his education was catered for by well-wishers and his way of giving back to society was to offer them education at a lower fee.

“He told us to pay Sh500 for registration for the Kenema program and then we would be paying for certificates and other requirements for the studies.”

From her class around 50 students enrolled in the institution and they joined students from other schools.

Some said that they were recruited through the media, churches, and secondary schools.

They were asked to pay Sh1,000 for the computer exam by the tutor and later the institution informed them that the tutor allegedly fled with the money.

Ochieng assured them that if one would present evidence of payment, they would be allowed to take the exam.

To further quiet the noise, he assured them, that the travel plans were still on and if they had misgivings about the program they could write a letter asking for a refund.

This only worked to win the trust of some parents and students as the number of admissions into the institution grew.

“Those who wrote letters asking for refund were given endless excuses, he said that his bank had some issues and that it would take time to complete the process.”

Ochieng allegedly told them that if they could not afford to raise Sh350,000 then the institution would offer loans.

To qualify for the loan, they were to give at least Sh150,000 and pay it back once they secured jobs.

“My sister was abroad for two years and she offered part of her savings for me to pay for the classes but now the money is lost.”

After realising something was amiss, the students protested demanding to see Ochieng only to be told that he was in Australia scouting for more opportunities.

“Not long after we started hearing rumours that the staff were not getting paid and some even started resigning.”

One of the employees at Kenema told The Standard that he was among the many brand ambassadors employed to market the institution and its services.

Ochieng told them to specifically spread the gospel of the International Student Placement Program (ISPP) to the students.

They were to convince them to sign up and that the much they would pay was the registration exam fee which was capped at Sh4,000.

“He would call for meetings where he would tell them that the faster you pay the faster you will go,” said the informant.

With the promise of faster processing of travel plans many more people took loans to finish paying and secure chances for their children.

“Once clients paid and filled the forms (for visa processing) I never saw any process going on,” she said.

At one time Ochieng came with visas that he had allegedly secured for the students yet they had never been given an appointment by the embassy.

The informant said the institution was closed down due to rent arrears since Ochieng was nowhere to be seen and he kept changing his phone numbers making it hard to be reached.

Following constant complaints from the students and parents, Buruburu Police Station became a meeting point for them.

Victims claimed that once Ochieng became aware of the DCI probe he sought the officer and bribed him to delay the matter.

Some of the victims said police officers assigned to the case kept calling asking to facilitate Ochieng’s arrest.

While people were looking for him Ochieng would allegedly spend the night at one of his staff’s house in Buruburu.

At the Ngomongo slum, we met, James Ojwang who had been by his son Silas Odhiambo that there was an organisation taking students abroad for studies.

He tasked his daughter to do due diligence and she said the institution was genuine.

“I paid Sh50,000 the first time which was from my other son, I then added Sh100,000 and another Sh16,000,” he said.

Ojwang was to give Sh150,000 since Odhiambo’s 'sponsor who was abroad' was topping it up with Sh150,000.

He said that he was told to purchase a geometric set and a special calculator.

After taking all the necessary steps and getting all the travel documents in order, his son alongside others was shown an air ticket which Ojwang now believes was fake.

His son stayed home for months before later joining the University of Nairobi where he is currently taking a veterinary course.

“If he has some humanity, he should refund parents the money they gave,” he said.

Odhiambo said he learned of Kenema scholarship opportunities while studying at St Francis High School.

Here they were told that the institution would cater for their education locally and connect them with sponsors who would pay for their tuition in universities abroad.

“We were told to pay Sh1,000 for registration and we were issued with Kenema membership card.”

Any student who wanted to go abroad would be isolated from the others and would be told that the donors would pay half of the required amount and the faster they paid the required amount the sooner one would travel.

“In January 2022 when we were complaining about our money, the institution was closed and it changed name and students were told not to go to the school,” he said.

When they reported the matter at Buruburu Police Station, a DCI officer who recorded their statements allegedly told them that Ochieng had gone abroad to talk to the donors to fast-track the process.

They reached out to a local politician who offered to help but never did.

“If he is caught right now and he refunds the money, it would really help, I currently have a Sh56,000 fee balance at the university,” said Odhiambo.

Another victim Tina Were told The Standard that she paid Sh258,000 to be facilitated to go to Canada where she was to secure a job while studying.

Were does not know how she gave in to the demands of Ochieng and Kenema but is glad that she withheld the balance, as her fee was supposed to be Sh400,000.

She sat the IELTS test but never received the results and she claimed to have gotten a Dubai visa and air ticket that turned out to be fake.

Were claimed that the officer at Buruburu Police Station kept asking the victims for more money to investigate the matter.

“We kept recording statements and nothing was changing,” she said.

Were claimed that an officer at the station asked for Sh50,000 from each victim to fuel their car, claiming that they had information that Ochieng was in Kisumu.

Another victim Stacy Gathoni lost Sh197,000 in the scam.

Part of the money came from the family’s savings and her cousin lent her some, which she is still paying.

She also filed a case at the Buruburu Police Station.

“We reported and tried to follow up but did not get anything.”

Gathoni was supposed to go to Canada for studies.

Milka Kiibui Maigacho, who was a preacher at Generation of Christ Ministries Church in the Kasarani constituency was once arrested and jailed in connection with the scam.

Speaking to The Standard on the phone she said she was not ready for interview on the matter but confirmed her arrest and incarceration at the Lang’ata Women’s Prison.

Maigacho said after investigations she was found innocent and was freed.

Buruburu DCI boss Daniel Ng’etich said that they are still looking for Ochieng whose last location was Tanzania.

“Investigations cannot be completed without a suspect.”

Ng’etich revealed that they have established that Ochieng sneaks in and out of Kenya.

“We lost him and we have since engaged Interpol to apprehend him, we will find him by all means,” he said.

He said the true amount of money that Ochieng is accused of obtaining may not be known since in some instances his victims made their payments in cash, which makes it hard to quantify.

The police boss acknowledged that the Kasarani DCI was also pursuing Ochieng based on the reports filed at the station.