By ZADOCK ANGIRA
Thursday, January 30, 2014
Nine suspects including a police officer and an employee of an airline involved in fake passport and visa cartels were arrested Wednesday night at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.
The head of Special Crime Prevention Unit Noah Katumo said that another employee of the Immigration department believed to be involved in the racket was being sought after he disappeared from the airport.
A Kenya Airways employee, identified as Paul Okoth Alala, was arrested for checking in the passengers with the knowledge that their documents were fake. The suspect is based at the Kenya Airways Transfer Desk for connecting passengers.
Also arrested was a Police Constable Mustafa Maalim attached to the airport’s Directorate of Criminal Investigations. The officer was also found to be having the mobile phone numbers of the suspects arrested plus the suspected financier, Mr Mohamed Ahmed.
Mr Katumo said that the cartel was operating from Ngara, at the offices of another suspect who was also arrested, Peter Nganaga Karanja. Detectives recovered 29 passports and visas, 39 loose papers, laptops, printers and lamination machine.
The three suspects plus two Ethiopians, two Somalis and two Bangladeshi nationals are to appear in court later in the day.
Source: Daily Nation