The Financial Reporting Centre (FRC) has frozen bank accounts of 10 Kenyans and three citizens of neighbouring countries containing hundreds of millions of shillings, amid suspicions that money was deposited into them to finance terror activities.
The Kenyans are said to have received unusually high sums from abroad, with investigations suggesting the United States as the possible source. Also affected are two Tanzanians and a Ugandan.
According to a source, some of the money was wired to the accounts as recently as November last year.
On Thursday, a determination by the Counter-Financing of Terrorism Inter-Ministerial Committee (CFTIMC) approved the designation of the individuals for inclusion on Kenya’s Domestic Terrorism Sanctions List.
The Kenyans are Zakariya Kamal Sufi Abasheikh, Jamal Abdi Mohamed, Hadija Issack Ali, Abdiweli Dubat Dege, Ramadhan Hamisi Kufungwa, Robert Karani Nyokae, Zuena Nakhumicha Machabe, Mohamed Siyat Ali, Violet Kemunto Omwoyo and Juma Ambare.
The others are Abubaker Swalleh, listed as Ugandan and Tanzanians Salehe Burhani Minja and Jerumami Usama Koja.
In a document uploaded by the centre, summaries of the individuals’ involvement in terrorism are given.
With regard to Violet Kemunto Omwoyo, it says: “She is part of a cross-border facilitation network supporting Al-Shabaab operations in Somalia. She was also linked to the Dusit D2 Hotel 2019 attack.”
Scenes from Dusit hotel that was attacked by terrorists on January 15, 2019.
For Juma Ambare, it indicates: “He facilitates the procurement and delivery of military grade equipment and other operational items such as communication equipment, drone components and digital watches for the benefit and/or on behalf of Al-Shabaab. His associates include Violet Kemunto Omwoyo.”
For Zakariya Kamal Sufi Abasheikh, the Financial Reporting Centre says: “He facilitates the procurement of military grade equipment for the benefit and/or on behalf of Al-Shabaab.”
Regarding Jamal Abdi Mohamed, it notes: “He is an ISIS facilitator and online recruiter based in Puntland, Somalia. He was responsible for the Latema Road Improvised Explosive Device (IED) incident carried out on January 26, 2019.
He is responsible for the financial and logistical facilitation of recruits from East African countries to Puntland for the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) training.”
Hadija Issack Ali is described, thus: “A key facilitator in the Islamic State network operating in Moyale aiding recruits’ movement towards Ethiopia and onwards into Somalia”.
On Abdiweli Dubat Dege, the centre says: “He is a financial facilitator, transferring funds for/on behalf of individuals linked to the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) and the Islamic State. The subject is reported to be facilitating the transfer of funds from Kenya to other regions within the East, Central and Southern Africa on/for the benefit of IS.”
The centre says Ramadhan Hamisi Kufungwa “operates a network responsible for recruiting and facilitating recruits to travel to Somalia to join Al-Shabaab. He facilitated and coordinated the Mpeketoni attack in 2014”.
KDF Soldiers on patrol in a village in Bodhai.
Photo credit: File | Nation Mdedia Group
On Robert Karani Nyokae, it says: “He is an Al-Shabaab operative who is involved in the recruitment of informants and fighters in Boni forest. He has been involved in Improvised Explosive Device attacks targeting security installations”.
Zuena Nakhumicha Machabe is described as “being involved in the recruitment of persons to ISIS. She coordinated and facilitated the movement of the recruits from the East African region to Somalia. She operated under the direct instructions of Jamal Abdi Mohamed, alias Abu Sayaf”.
Mohamed Siyat Ali, on the other hand, is described as “an IS facilitator who transfers funds through cryptocurrency from several crypto wallets, including those linked to associates of Bilal Al Sudani aka Sudani, the Deputy Commander of ISIS Al-Karrar office linked to IS – Somalia”.
Some of the flagged transfers were made from the US via Turkiye and South Africa, and then on to Nairobi.
Financial institutions holding money linked to them are expected to provide a full catalogue of their property and cash holdings in the next few days.
The curbs on the accounts applied with immediate effect, triggering asset freezes and broad prohibitions intended to deny them access to the formal financial system.
“Freeze without prior notice, within 24 hours of the committee’s decision to designate. All funds or other assets that are owned or controlled by the designated person or entity, and not just those that can be tied to a particular terrorist act, plot or threat,” FRC Director-General Saitoti Maika says in Financial sanctions notice 1 of 2026 to the banks.
In collaboration with Interpol and the US through the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and the Office of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence (TFI), some 31 accounts in nine local banks were flagged. Most of the individuals operate more than one account.
Interpol Secretary-General Jurgen Stock.
Photo credit: Romain Lafabregue | AFP
Joint investigations with Interpol could lead to the extradition of individuals to the US if they are unable to account for the money.
A source familiar with the investigations told the Saturday Nation that, in some cases, individuals had received money from the same US bank accounts that were later flagged by the authorities.
Officials describe the designations as a law enforcement breakthrough, reflecting months of financial intelligence analyses and inter-agency coordination.
“This is preventive security. You intervene before money becomes logistics, and logistics becomes violence,” an investigator said.
FRC is required to report to Parliament through the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning. They are supposed to file periodic reports with it.
The FRC was created by the Proceeds of Crime and Anti-Money Laundering Act that was assented into law in 2009.
Several institutions are mandated by law to report to the centre, including banks and saccos, all forms of lenders, casinos, stock brokers, life insurance providers, real estate agencies, accountants and lawyers. The Act calls them reporting institutions.
“Every reporting institution shall report suspicious transactions in accordance with the Act,” says the legislation.
Kenya has in recent weeks escalated its war on terrorism financing, ordering banks and other regulated institutions to freeze assets and sever ties with individuals suspected of funding extremist activity.
The move, issued under the Prevention of Terrorism Act and related regulations, signals a hardening posture by authorities determined to choke illicit cash flows as the country races to strengthen its standing in the global financial system.
“They are facilitators. Their accounts, transaction patterns and associations are what raised red flags,” the centre said.
According to multiple sources in national security and anti–money laundering circles, it was unusual account activity – rather than public profile – that drew the attention of investigators.
Notably, the targets are not prominent public figures. Security officials say that is precisely the point.
Kenya’s counter-terrorism strategy has long been defined by military operations against Al-Shabaab and intensified border surveillance.
Increasingly, however, the fight is being waged in boardrooms and bank vaults. The CFTIMC – bringing together the Ministry of Interior, the National Intelligence Service, the Central Bank of Kenya, the National Counter Terrorism Centre and FRC – has embraced financial disruption as a frontline defence.
Under the sanctions framework, institutions must freeze assets without notice, block access to any economic resources and report actions within strict timelines.
Even attempted or failed transactions are flagged. The restrictions extend beyond assets held directly by the listed individuals to include jointly owned funds, indirectly controlled resources, businesses under their influence and third parties acting on their behalf.
The move comes as Kenya intensifies reforms aimed at exiting the Financial Action Task Force grey list – a designation that signals elevated risk to investors and correspondent banks.
Demonstrating the ability to identify, designate and isolate suspected terrorism financiers is seen as essential to restoring confidence in Nairobi’s status as a regional financial hub.
Banks, mobile money operators, insurers, saccos, real estate companies and law practitioners have been warned that facilitating sanctioned persons – by masking ownership, holding assets or providing commercial cover – could attract severe penalties, including asset seizure.
Kenya’s property boom has long attracted scrutiny from regulators. Cash purchases, shell companies and limited transparency around beneficial ownership have made real estate a preferred destination for illicit capital.
Authorities have warned developers, brokers and lawyers that transactions linked to sanctioned individuals – directly or indirectly – could trigger criminal liability.
“The property sector is now a frontline. If we do not close loopholes there, we undermine everything else,” a senior FRC official said.
Listed individuals may petition the CFTIMC for delisting if they can demonstrate beyond a reasonable doubt that they have ceased the conduct that led to their designation.
Officials say this preserves procedural fairness while maintaining pressure on suspected facilitators.
