A court in Eldoret has ordered a man accused of defrauding job seekers of more than KSh12 million to begin repaying his victims, many of whom were young graduates desperate for employment.
Joseph Kipkoech Keino was accused of promising lucrative hotel jobs in Australia, with a supposed monthly salary of KSh900,000. In exchange, victims paid him sums ranging from KSh300,000 to KSh1.8 million between March and July last year.
Eighteen people, including university and college students as well as taxi operators, were said to have fallen prey to the scheme.
On Monday, Eldoret Principal Magistrate Cherono Kesse directed Keino to make an initial payment of KSh150,000 by September 29. Failure to do so, she warned, would lead to the cancellation of his KSh3 million bond.
“The court cannot sit back while victims continue to suffer losses,” Ms. Kesse told the packed courtroom. “The accused must show commitment to refunding the money he received.”
Keino, who first appeared in court in September last year, denied the charges and was released on a KSh3 million bond with a surety of the same amount.
The victims’ lawyer told the court that the scam had devastated families, some of whom sold land and vehicles in the hope of securing overseas work.
Keino is expected back in court on October 6 to confirm whether he has complied with the repayment order. Should he fail to do so, the magistrate said he would be remanded at Eldoret DK Prison.
While the directive offers hope for compensation, many of the victims remain sceptical. One young man outside court said, “We have been waiting for justice for over a year. We just want our money back.”
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