Controversial blogger Cyprian Nyakundi is in police custody after he was arrested on Monday, January 20, for allegedly extorting Ksh17.5 million from business owners.
According to a statement shared by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), the blogger alongside another suspect identified as Emmanuel Nyamweya Ong'era had just received Ksh1 Million from the victims, the executives of Victoria Bank, a downpayment of Ksh17.5 million when they were arrested.
The DCI claimed that the two had demanded the hefty amount in order to pull down a libellous article from a website linked to them.
"Detectives based at Gigiri have today afternoon arrested two suspects namely Cyprian Andama Nyakundi and Emmanuel Nyamweya Ong'era after successful investigations touching on extortion, blackmail, and false accusations.
"The two had just received Ksh1 million from one of their victims being a down payment of Ksh 17.5 million they had earlier demanded as a precondition for pulling down libellous posts appearing on a website allegedly owned by the suspects," read the statement in part.
The money was recovered and the two suspects are set to be arraigned in court on Tuesday, January 21.
The detectives disclosed that the blogger had published a story about Victoria Bank in October last year claiming that it had been involved in fraudulent dealings and money laundering.
It was also noted that Nyakundi had initiated a conversation with the bank's top executives in January 2020 and asked them for money in order for him to pull down the story.
It was at around that time that the executives reported him to Gigiri Police Station and investigations into the matter opened.
The detectives also revealed that the bank's bosses had maintained conversations with Nyakundi and had promised to pay him the money on Monday, January 20. That was when the police laid a trap at Westgate Mall and captured him.
