A 25-year-old man, who staged his own kidnapping and inflicted cuts on his body to demand a Sh100,000 ransom from his sister, has been arrested by detectives in Kitengela, Kajiado County.
The operation took place on the morning of Friday, December 13, after the man, identified as Nobert Mulwo, spent hours hiding in a lodging while pretending to be a victim of abduction.
He had tied himself with ropes and used a bloody bandage to seal his mouth in a deliberate attempt to pressure his family into paying the ransom.
The incident began on the evening of December 12 when a report was filed at Kajiado Police Station stating that Mulwo had been forcibly taken by two men in a Toyota Probox.
Acting on this information, detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) swiftly tracked Mulwo to Mutuku Lodgings in Kitengela.
Upon rescue, investigators discovered that the kidnapping was a hoax, orchestrated by Mulwo in collaboration with an accomplice identified only as Ndolo.
The scheme was triggered after Mulwo lost his entire November salary to betting.
Detectives recovered Sh10,100 in cash and the phone used by Mulwo to communicate with his family, alongside a scalpel blade and bandages used to create fake injuries.
He had sent photos of his self-inflicted wounds to his sister, claiming they were inflicted by his captors.
Mulwo was handed over to DCI Kajiado for legal processing, and he will soon be arraigned in court.
This case is part of a growing trend of individuals faking their own kidnappings for ransom.
A similar incident occurred in September when three teenagers in Meru staged a kidnapping to extort Sh6 million from one of their families.
The teens, who were arrested after an investigation revealed their scheme, also had marijuana in their possession during their arrest.
Authorities continue to warn against such fraudulent activities, stressing the importance of thorough investigations to protect families from these elaborate scams.
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