About four years ago, the Mulot SIM-swap criminals—long associated with mobile money fraud—mainly operated in Bomet and Narok counties.
Mulot, comprising three trading centres (Mulot Sunset in Bomet County, Mulot Central and Mulot Olomirani in Narok County), was an unlikely cybercrime hub in Kenya and the East African region.
The centres, separated by River Amalo, the natural boundary between Bomet and Narok, have for years borne the brunt of being associated with the fraudsters popularly known as swappers.
The main road leading into Mulot town, Bomet County pictured on November 2, 2022.
Photo credit: Francis Nderitu | Nation Media Group
Fast-forward to 2025: amid an ongoing crackdown by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), Daily Nation has established that the criminals have changed tactics, expanded their operations and adopted more sophisticated technology.
On Sunday, DCI Director Amin Mohamed said detectives have intensified efforts to dismantle digital fraud syndicates across the country, including the Mulot SIM-swap network.
“The DCI is conducting an ongoing crackdown as part of efforts to dismantle digital fraud syndicates that have been preying on mobile banking users across the country, often siphoning funds through SIM swaps, phishing and unauthorised account access,” Mr Mohamed said.
A busy tarmac road leading to notorious cybercrime hotspot Mulot Central in Bomet County.
Photo credit: Vitalis Kimutai | Nation Media Group
“This operation underscores our commitment to tackling digital fraud and protecting Kenyans. I urge citizens to work with the DCI and provide information anonymously to help tame the criminals.”
A senior DCI detective on Monday told Daily Nation that although Mulot remains the notorious “headquarters” of mobile money fraud, intensified crackdowns have pushed the criminals to relocate to other urban centres within and outside the Rift Valley.
“Following regular crackdowns in Mulot, the fraudsters have scattered to towns and cities including Nakuru, Eldoret, Nairobi, Kiambu, Mombasa, Nyahururu, Kisii and others to evade police dragnets. But we will continue striking their hideouts,” the detective said.
He added that the criminals have acquired expensive and sophisticated tools, including spoofing technology that allows them to masquerade as legitimate customer care agents from banks or telecommunications firms.
The fraudsters also use phishing—creating fake websites and emails that mimic legitimate services—to trick victims into revealing passwords, PINs and other personal details. In some cases, victims unknowingly install malware that records keystrokes, enabling criminals to capture security credentials.
The criminals rely on stolen or fraudulently generated ID numbers and forged police abstracts or waiting cards to register SIM cards and execute swaps.
On Monday, Rift Valley Regional Commissioner Dr Abdi Hassan confirmed the sustained crackdown.
“We will conduct numerous raids to arrest SIM-swap criminals. The crackdown will extend to towns and cities where they may have relocated. Our focus will be on hotspots in the Central Rift and South Rift, where the criminals have been siphoning money from victims’ accounts,” Dr Hassan said.
He noted that several suspects have been profiled, arrested and placed on watch lists, adding that authorities remain committed to dismantling the syndicates.
Dr Hassan urged the youth involved in the crime to take advantage of government digital hubs and opportunities within the digital economy instead of engaging in fraud. He noted that most of the suspects are young and many are school dropouts who have been recruited into the networks.
Over the weekend, police arrested five suspects linked to the SIM-swap syndicate during an early-morning operation at Mulot market. The suspects are in custody and expected to face multiple charges including conspiracy to defraud, engaging in organised crime and acquiring proceeds of crime.
In recent months, SIM-swap criminals linked to Mulot syndicates have been arrested in Nairobi, Nakuru, Kericho, Kiambu, Mombasa and Eldoret.
On November 6, 2025, detectives arrested six suspects in possession of 2,464 IDs and more than 3,000 SIM cards believed to have been used in mobile money scams.
A section of shops at Mulot Central trading centre which has the highest concentration of mobile phone money transfer fraudsters.
Photo credit: Vitalis Kimutai | Nation Media Group
Earlier, on February 22, 2025, DCI detectives arrested seven suspects in Ruiru for stupefying a male victim and swapping his SIM card before sweeping Sh250,000 from his mobile bank accounts.
More suspects were arrested in Olbutyo, Chepalungu constituency, where police recovered unused and used SIM cards, stolen IDs and exercise books containing names, mobile numbers, PINs, M-Pesa balances, Fuliza limits and KCB-M-Pesa loan limits of victims.
Although Mulot is known for farming and general trade, it has also gained notoriety as a centre for mobile money fraud.
Last month, Interior Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen said the government had made significant progress in dismantling the Mulot SIM-swap syndicate, citing numerous arrests and enhanced cooperation with mobile service providers to tighten security systems.
