A Congolese national who was being held accountable for a Ksh.13 million gold scam was apprehended on Wednesday as he attempted to enter Kenya through the Busia border.
According to a statement released by the DCI, Puati Poba Dally, 35, was detained by immigration authorities after a stop order was issued in September 2023, when the complaint was filed at the Nairobi offices of the Operations Support Unit.
Puati and his associates had deceived the millions above from a gold merchant in Ghana by claiming to bring him gold that he would sell in the United Arab Emirates.
When the victim met Puati in a Ghanaian hotel, his problems started. Puati identified himself as an Osuman from Nigeria who was in Ghana on business but whose home and business addresses were in Uganda.
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After that, Puati pledged to present the victim to Ugandan dealers so he could sell the gold in Dubai. On August 1, 2023, the victim took a plane to Uganda, where Puati presented him to the brothers, Ben and Hassan, the purported dealers.
Here, the victim was duped out of Ksh. 10.7 million by the three suspects under the pretense of providing documentation of 10 kg of gold, a non-criminality certification, melting, and taxation. The agreed-upon price of USD 33,000 per kilogram of gold was to be paid upon delivery to Dubai.
The victim, distraught over what had happened, caught the attention of the DCI OSU team at the JKIA when he began to scream and wail uncontrollably during takeoff. After being forced to leave the aircraft, he made a statement about what had transpired, and the hunt for the suspects began.
