“How I Got Conned,” Job Seeker Loses Sh180K On The Internet

“How I Got Conned,” Job Seeker Loses Sh180K On The Internet

By Jane Okoth,
Fraudsters have devised a way of robbing unsuspecting Kenyans millions of shillings by taking advantage of their desperation to seek employment.

In a recent article published by the star, a woman lost more than 180,000 to West Africa and Southern Africa con-men through the internet.

Mary Wanjiku is said to have authorized her bank to carry out the transaction after the fraudsters requested her money in order to process her visa to South Africa for employment.

Mary is one of the many victims in Kenya who are conned by unscrupulous people with the promise of acquiring better jobs abroad.

Sheila Kwamboka* a high school dropout also felled for the same trick.

“The lady spoke in English and had promised to take me to Germany for further studies and even promised that she would facilitate my hiring after I completed school.” She explains.

“She demanded 20,000 which I got from my parents in order for her to process my visa and travel documents. She then complained to me that she was not able to do so because the money was not enough. I gave her an additional 50,000 which she claimed would pay to the school which I was supposed to study.

I began suspecting after I realized that she was taking too long to facilitate the travel arrangements. I decided to visit her office only to be told that she does not work there and she could not be reached through the phone.” she laments.

Marcus Omwaga* an accountant at a governmental institution, painfully remembers the day when he was conned of ksh 68,000 by unknown people.

“I had applied a job through one of the prestigious NGO’s  in Kenya with no success. A friend of mine later introduced me to a person he claimed had “connections” to getting my dream job.

I received a call two weeks later by the same person confirming that I had been selected for interview and had to travel to Lodwar the following day.

But the fellow claimed that since this was a high profile job and I was needed immediately, I had to travel by plane. He requested 10,000 from me in order to process the plane tickets.

I had to borrow it from friends and parents since I was jobless. He then sent me the plane tickets by mail and I can assure you that they looked original. He further asked for an additional 58,000 from me in order to arrange for the room that I was to stay.

After packing all my belongings and getting ready for the next day, I decided to inform my uncle since he had previously worked with an n.g.o. He was curious and wanted to know every detail of my new job and how I got it.

He then decided to confirm with the Kenya airways team if they had me on their travel list. To my surprise they did not have my name and studying carefully at the tickets, they confirmed to me that they were fake.

What advice does he have to Kenyans who would do anything to get a job?

“My advice to the young job seekers is to be vigilant and watch out for fraudsters who make money out of us. Just because you are jobless does not mean you became so desperate,” he concludes.

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