Three individuals have been arrested in connection with an alleged fake recruitment scheme in Eldoret. The arrests followed an operation in which the suspects transported dozens of young people from rural areas of Uasin Gishu to Eldoret City, promising them lucrative job opportunities in Dubai.
According to Daniel Muleli, the head of the Uasin Gishu DCI, some of the youths were brought from Ziwa and taken to a hotel in Eldoret. They were later moved to a different location near the Annex area, which raised suspicions among the youths, who had been given recruitment forms to fill out.
“At the Annex, they were taken to a private residence, which further aroused suspicion. An alert was raised, and we immediately dispatched officers, leading to the arrest of the suspects,” said Muleli.
The arrested individuals claimed to be affiliated with a registered recruitment agency licensed by the National Employment Agency (NEA) to operate in Nairobi, but not in Eldoret. “One of the suspects claimed to be the CEO of the agency, although it has no authorization to operate in this area,” Muleli added.
The authorities are now investigating the case further to uncover the full extent of the recruitment operation in the region, where many people have previously fallen victim to fraudulent schemes promising overseas jobs and educational opportunities.
Some of the affected youths, including Japheth Kipngetich, Job Kipkosgey, and Aaron Kiplimo, said they were lured to Eldoret under the impression that the job offers were legitimate. “The recruiters came all the way to Ziwa and assured us that the jobs were real, promising Sh38,000 for unskilled labor and over Sh60,000 for skilled workers,” said Kipkosgey.
Initially, they were told that all document processing would be free of charge, but later, the recruiters asked for money in exchange for securing the positions.
The recruitment forms provided to the youths were partly written in Chinese and appeared to be linked to a Chinese company.
“We will conduct a thorough investigation to uncover the truth before deciding on the appropriate course of action,” Muleli said.
