After toiling and securing the bag, most Kenyans, especially athletes, often look forward to spending their hard-earned millions in an abyss.
From travelling abroad on vacation to birdwatching and other exotic hobbies of the rich, some wealthy individuals fantasize about early retirement to spend their years watching the sunset.
Some, however, see their plans knocked off course in well-orchestrated schemes that see them lose multi-million properties and other possessions.
Here are five high-achievers who lost millions from their accounts unexpectedly.
1. MP Conned Ksh76 million
A Member of Parliament (MP) was among eight Kenyans who were conned millions in a fake currency scam in 2018.
The MP was reported to have lost Ksh76 million in the scheme that was operated in Westlands by two Mali nationals (father and son), and a Kenyan who promised the MP that they would double the money.
The MP sold his car and a piece of land in the posh Karen suburbs and took the money to the scammers to multiply.
Citizen TV reported that the MP, in a statement to the police, narrated that he had already lost the Ksh76 million but kept going back to the syndicate in the hopes that the money would be doubled.
2. Henry Rono
Rono was a former Kenyan athlete and record-breaker who slid into alcoholism and suffered homelessness as well as several arrests for drunk driving in 1984 and he ended up working menial jobs to survive.
In July 2022, the former record breaker stated that his plight started when he disagreed with Kenyan athletics officials after the government boycotted the 1976 Montreal Olympics where he was shortlisted to participate in the 5,000 meters race.
He found a new coach in Washington who trained him but he slid into alcoholism and lost control of his financial footing.
He later, reportedly, lost track of his bank accounts, lost some cash on aeroplanes and repeatedly invested in doomed projects, mostly made up by conmen.
He started living in guest rooms of his friends in between attending rehabilitation centres and at some point, he parked cars in Oregon County, assisted people in wheelchairs at the Albuquerque Airport, or rang church bells for a living.
3. Delilah Asiago
Asiago was one of the elite long-distance runners who took the world by storm for almost two decades.
She proudly represented Kenya in major international competitions, winning gold medals in events such as the Steamboat Classic, where she set a world record.
The long-distance athlete earned up to Ksh30 million for winning individual races and breaking world records. However, she lived in poverty and picked tea in Cherangany and Trans Nzoia for a living.
In a Citizen TV interview in 2021, Asiego stated that she could not account for any of the millions she made aside from the amount she used to build a home for her parents.
She explained that troubles began in 1999 when she was banned for two years due to doping allegations noting that she had taken medicine which later tested positive for doping substances.
4. Lucy Githaiga
Lucy was a master's degree holder living in Nairobi who, alongside her friends, collectively lost a total of Ksh 11 million through financial scams.
In 2021, she narrated that she was introduced to a man named George who asked her to invest millions to purchase gold that he would use to make jewellery and sell.
George later convinced her to join in the investment via their Whatsapp group.
Lucy noted that she invested all her money and withdrew all her shares from her SACCO in addition to investments from her friends.
She only realised that she had been duped when she wanted to withdraw the money and reached out to George who kept saying that the system had a problem and that he was working on it. She repeatedly organised a meeting with George but he never showed up.
The scam followed an earlier gold scam that had also seen her lose Ksh4 million.
5. Bernard Barmasai
Kenyan 3,000m steeplechase runner, Bernard Barmasai, was meant to receive about Ksh118 million at the 1999 Weltklasse Golden Meeting in Zurich.
However, after winning the race, he was found guilty of match-fixing and came back to the country empty-handed.
Officials noted that he whispered the word Metowo which loosely translates to “leave it to me” in English or "Niachie" in Kiswahili to his friend Christopher Koskei, who was also running the race.
Reports noted that he intended to share the prize money with his friend Koskei after winning.
“We missed the jackpot cash in 1999 but we remain great friends. I have not met him (Koskei) in recent days. I met him during the Eldoret City marathon and we recalled memories of our competitions in the 1990s and in the 2000s,” Barmasai stated in July 2022.
6. Daniel Kichirchir Komen
Komen is another successful athlete who dominated the 1500 meters men's race between 2003 and 2011 but had nothing to show for his success.
His failure, however, is all blamed on his lawyer who he hired to help him identify investment opportunities.
In a past interview, Komen stated that he made more than Ksh35 million over the years but his lawyer duped him by asking him to transfer different sums amounting to millions to his bank accounts, alleging that he was investing the amount on his behalf.
Further, he claimed that the lawyer asked him to purchase a piece of land valued at Ksh12 million. However, when he was given the sale agreement, he realised that it was written in the lawyer's name.
In court, the lawyer claimed that he managed the business since Komen was always out of the country and wondered why the athlete was complaining of an arrangement he was familiar with.
