Detectives have arrested two suspects and are pursuing more leads after a transaction in which a Swiss national paid USD 140,000 (approximately Ksh 18 million) for the movement of a 20-kilogram gold consignment that was never shipped, shifting the focus of the case toward how the deal was structured and who handled the funds.
The payment, described as logistical fees tied to a consignment said to be headed to Dubai, was made through Kandiki & Advocates, after Stephane Pierre Harder lodged a complaint through his agent Ulrich Kenney, a Gabonese national, setting off investigations into the arrangement agreed on April 14, 2025.
Police have since detained Seth Steve Okute and Kelvin Otieno Onyango alias Sonko, while Kayembe Malamba Eli and Benold Okoth are also named in the case, with prosecutors recommending a charge of conspiracy to defraud under Section 317 of the Penal Code following a review of the file by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions.
A separate count of obtaining money by false pretence is set to be brought against Onyango, Okoth and Esther Bituku Kandiki of Kandiki & Advocates, who is yet to be arrested as detectives continue efforts to trace her over her link to the channel through which the funds moved.
Investigators are still tracking other persons tied to the transaction while working to recover the money, keeping the inquiry open as attention turns to how the agreement was executed and the roles played by each of the named parties.
The current case also draws in Onyango’s past record with investigators, after he was arraigned in 2024 following his arrest at his office at China WU-YI Plaza in Kilimani, where a raid along Galana Road led to the recovery of company documents, stamps, seals and forged mining licences presented as having been issued by the Ministry of Mining.
He was charged with 10 counts of making a document without authority and forgery, pleaded not guilty, and was released on a Ksh 300,000 bond or a cash bail of Ksh 200,000.
In a separate operation in 2023, detectives recovered two firearms and more than 470 rounds of ammunition of 9mm and 5.56 mm calibre after arresting 10 suspects linked to a $534,000 USD (Ksh 67.3 million) scheme targeting two American citizens, in raids carried out in Kitusuru and Kilimani.
Those arrested in that operation were eight Kenyans alongside an Indian and a Greek national, with Seth Steve Okuthe, identified as Director of NewSkys Global Cargo Movers, and Brunoh Otieno Oliende alias Oyugi among the first to be picked up following a report made by Marjorie R. Grant, an American investor based in Los Angeles, California.
Further arrests followed at offices along Maalim Juma Road in Kilimani, where Samuel Wathika Gathuru, Kaisarios Loamms, Odhiambo Tobias Patrobas, Oketch Moses, Patrick Mugabe, Elisha Mbandi, Teddy Zamora and Siva Sakthi Veru were taken into custody as detectives documented items linked to the operation.
During the raid, Samuel Waithaka was found with a Sigsauer P229 pistol, while Steve Okute was found with a Baretta pistol loaded with 13 rounds of 9mm ammunition, as officers also recovered laptops, mineral stones coated in gold and silver colours, a cheque book issued by a local bank, metal analyser tools, cash counting machines and a rubber stamp inscribed Bukule Tereno Advocates Kinshasa.
Detectives also intercepted Siva Sakthi Veru, who had just arrived in the country and was in the process of losing over Ksh25 million in a deal of a similar nature, stopping the transaction before it was completed as part of the same operation.
