Police in Nairobi are investigating how a lecturer allegedly duped several students of USIU-Africa out of more than Sh10 million for a trip to the United Kingdom that never was.
The students who recorded statements at the Kasarani Police Station allege that the said lecturer deceived and conned them of their money through false pretenses in the name of an education trip in April 2024.
The lecturer in question was on Thursday presented to court and police given 14 days to probe the matter and prefer appropriate charges against him.
The students claim they were conned close to Sh10 million through false pretenses by someone whom they trusted, someone they believed was their mento.
Sometime in November 2023, Moses Joshua Onyango, who was the Chairman of the International Relations department, allegedly informed them of the said trip to the United Kingdom. Each student was to pay USD 3,000 (Sh386,485), an amount paid by some of the parents.
According to the complainants, 24 students fell into the trap and parted away with the money. If each student paid USD 3,000, this amounts to Sh10,872,000.
However, police say Onyango can only verify having received close to Sh7 million from the students for the trip that never was.
After the said amount was paid, either fully or in installments, something unexpected happened; the trip was to take place in April 2024, but it was postponed under unclear circumstances.
Students took up the matter with the school and demanded answers in every way possible; they needed their tickets and a confirmation of the traveling date.
In their quest to know what had transpired, they were met with a rude shock. They found out that the trip had not been sanctioned by the university.
In fact, the school had cancelled any plans for the students to travel to the United Kingdom; a long journey to have their money refunded began, but it was full of obstacles.
When their voices couldn’t be heard anymore, they agreed to have the matter investigated by the police.
The distraught students say efforts to address their grievances with the institution have not yielded much. Emails have been sent to the dean of the university, but no feedback.
To their surprise, they have just learnt that the lecturer has since been fired from the institution.
“We are aware of the issues raised by some students about a planned trip to the United Kingdom that aborted. We have taken these concerns seriously and a comprehensive review of the situation is underway. We will share further information with our stakeholders upon completion of this process. To maintain the integrity of the investigation, we will withhold comment until its conclusion. Regards,
Vice Chancellor,” said USIU in a statement.
The lecturer had allegedly directed the students to deposit the money in his personal bank account. He even went to the extent of faking a travel itinerary just to ensure the students believed the story.
Moses Joshua Onyango was grilled by the police and investigators took him to the courts on Thursday. The Makadara Law Courts ordered that he be released on a cash bail as police probe the matter further.
Detectives want to investigate the said bank account to see how much was deposited by the complainants, when the deposits were made, and if there are other charges that can be incorporated to have the accused prosecuted.
