Suspected fraudster arrested for impersonating Dorcas Rigathi on Facebook

A man accused of impersonating Dorcas Rigathi, the wife of Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, on Facebook has been arrested on fraud charges. 

Blaise Wafula, 23, is accused of using at least 14 fake Facebook accounts to send messages to social media users promising them soft loans.

All they had to do to get the easy loan was Sh700 as registration fee and an extra Sh2,500 as security for the loan.

So successful was this fraud that the suspect had employed his alleged girlfriend, who is a minor, as his secretary. The girl communicated with interested applicant and guided them through the ' registration process'.

Police said the suspect promised to give loans ranging from from Sh1,000 to Sh200,000. Police say one victim from Vihiga County was conned Sh29,000.

This online fraud would have continued unnoticed, had duped Kenyans who personally knew the Second Lady not called her asking when their loans would come.

Police were notified and the three-day hunt for the suspect, who is also the ring leader of a gang called Gaza that operates in parts of Trans Nzoia County, began.

First, the police detectives tracked the phone number of the 'secretary' and arrested her in Nangili late Sunday night. 

Detectives took the phone that victims were sending money to and confirmed that over Sh100,000 was in the M-pesa account. So thriving was the business that another victim sent Sh2,500 while police were inspecting the phone.

“The victim, upon calling the number several times and not getting any response, decided to reverse the transaction. There were many calls coming to that phone and we suspect they were making a kill from this business,” one of the detectives handling the case told the Nation. 

The main suspect was arrested the same night at a liquor joint in Soy.

“We arrested the suspect alongside nine other gang members,” police said. 

The main suspect and his girlfriend were taken to Nairobi for further questioning and will be arraigned in court Wednesday. 

They face several charges including obtaining money by false pretense and impersonation.