A suspect was on December 17, 2025 charged with obtaining money by false pretences, after allegedly conning a victim Ksh 330,000 in a fake Canada visa scam.
The court heard that between September 17, 2024, and June 3, 2025, the accused received Ksh 330,000 from a complainant after claiming she could facilitate the acquisition of a Canadian visa.
Prosecutors stated that the funds were collected at a secret location, with the accused aware that the claim was false, constituting an offence under Section 313 of the Penal Code.
The accused accepted in court that the allegations were true, and the court granted a bond of Ksh 200,000 with one surety pending the hearing and determination of the case.
The charge reflected a wider problem as visa fraud in Kenya increasingly targeted ordinary citizens seeking work, study, or relocation opportunities abroad.
In late 2024, senior government officials and a civilian accomplice were arraigned over a scheme that allegedly added illegitimate travellers to an official foreign travel list at a fee of up to Ksh 600,000 per person.
In November 2025, the British High Commission issued a warning about a “sophisticated” fraud ring that used fake job offers and official-looking emails to lure victims.
Cases of recruitment fraud rose sharply, including a travel agency that lost its licence in 2025 for allegedly scamming job seekers of Ksh 720 million with fake caregiver positions in Canada.
Another recruitment firm was investigated for allegedly conning hundreds of workers with promises of overseas employment that never materialised.
Investigators said common tricks included guarantees of visa approval, claims of inside embassy connections, sham job offers, and falsified financial or academic documents.
Under Kenyan law, fraud attracted fines ranging from Ksh 300,000 to Ksh 20 million or imprisonment of up to 10 years.
