Distraught Mother Exposes Friend Using Dead Son's Phone to Extort Her

A Kenyan police officer pictured at a crime scene.
A Kenyan police officer pictured at a crime scene.
Kenyans.co.ke

A man was arrested by police officers based in Kasarani for allegedly impersonating his dead friend and extorting money from the deceased's family based in the US.

The deceased's mother, represented by Lawyer Danstan Omari, on Monday, January 16, revealed that she got suspicious over the texts the man sent them via WhatsApp.

The lawyer stated that the family wondered why their kin (who was being impersonated) did not want to make phone calls.

"The family, including the mother, started receiving texts from the phone number asking for money. The matter went on for a long time until the family started asking questions why he never wanted them to talk on the phone," the lawyer stated.

Danstan Omari
A photo of prominent lawyer Danstan Omari during a TV interview.
Photo

On some occasions, the mother questioned if she was indeed talking to her 32-year-old son given that she was being referred to as mum instead of mathee as her son did.

In a December 24, 2022 text, the mother queried the suspect on the whereabouts of her son after the phone number was changed and Ksh5,000 requested.

"Is this my son? Where is he?" The mother queried.

"He is using my number. His phone is faulty. He is out kidogo (for a while). I will tell him to get back to you," the friend responded to the text.

According to the police, the deceased is reported to have been taken to Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) on December 1, 2022, by a good samaritan after being found on the roadside.

The family indicated that the man was booked as unknown since no family member or friend had been around to identify him.

"His face was a mess as we could not see his eyes. He also had some burns on the left side of his face. Unfortunately, the fingerprints returned positive," Elizabeth Chege, the deceased's aunt asserted.

Investigations into the matter are still ongoing and it is believed that the suspect could have had a hand in the death of the 32-year-old.

A file image of a WhatsApp user
A file image of a WhatsApp user
File
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