Detectives attached to the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) jointly with their Masaba North counterparts on Sunday arrested a notorious examination fraudster in Kisii County.
The suspect, who was the administrator of ‘KCSE 2024 Leakage Group’ on Telegram, was cornered and arrested after a sustained surveillance operation.
Sleuths tracked down the suspect’s location and ambushed him while at his residence in Masaba North, Kisii.
A detailed search at his premises resulted in the seizure of a mobile phone and a laptop, the supposed tools of trade he uses to exploit parents and students involved in the cheating.
The suspect is currently in custody and will aid in investigations. He was arrested for being in possession of unauthorized materials contrary to section 27 (1) of the KNEC Act No 29 of 2021 (revised 2019).
“A person who, before or during an examination, has in his or her possession or under his or her control any examination paper or any part thereof, or any material or information purporting to relate to the contents of any paper or material for that examination, without lawful excuse, commits an offence and is liable, upon conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding ten years, or a fine not exceeding two million shillings, or to both,” reads section 27 (1) of the KNEC Act.
Meanwhile, police are hot on the heels of other individuals engaging in similar malpractices who are extorting money from parents and students.
The arrest comes as the Ministry of Education vowed to crack the whip on exam malpractices and ensure all those found culpable are brought to book.
Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Migos on Monday assured parents, students, and teachers that KNEC would no longer cancel entire centres' national exams if malpractice is detected.
Instead, the CS noted that the body would handle cheating cases on an individual basis to ensure that no collateral damages are incurred.
Addressing examiners at Lang'ata Sub-County Headquarters in Nairobi, Migos explained that security measures were put in place to curb leakages and that individuals, including students, carry their crosses when caught.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I am here to report that we put in place very serious measures to the extent that this year if there is any malpractice, we are not going to condemn the whole school, centre, or number of people who are there. It is going to be individualised," the CS stated.
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