Foreigners Arrested While Issuing PhD Degrees to Kenyans After 3-Day Training

Authorities in Mombasa have nabbed four individuals, including two foreign nationals, in connection with a sensational university scheme involving acquiring certificates in record time.

The suspects are believed to have been operating a fake University near a popular hotel in Mombasa where they offered Master’s and PhD certificates to participants after three days of training.

Police eventually caught wind of the operations, with officers from Bamburi Police Station apprehending the four suspects, who included an American citizen and a Pakistani national.

In a bizarre twist, police intervened in the nick of time to quell an ongoing graduation ceremony before the students at the fraudulent university could be awarded their certificates.

According to DCI, the fraudulent certifications included three Master of Business Administration (Leadership and Management) degrees and two PhDs in Leadership (Hon. Causa).

After arraignment at the Shanzu Law Courts, the suspects were charged with Conferring Degrees Without Accreditation of Foreign Universities Contrary to Section 28(2) as read with Section 5 of the Universities Act.

The suspects have been arraigned before Shanzu Law Courts where they were charged with Conferring Degrees Without Accreditation of Foreign Universities Contrary to Section 28(2) as read with Section 5 of the Universities Act.

The act states, “A person who without the authority of the Commission under this Act purports to license, accredit, recognise, audit, inspect, index students or collect a fee or a charge from a university or a student commits an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding KSh2 million or imprisonment.”

Expectedly, the suspects pleaded not guilty and were given a bond of Ksh400,000 with similar surety or a cash bail of Ksh300,000. The case will be mentioned again on February 18.

The issue of fake academic credentials has been prevalent in Kenya for years, with bodies like the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission grappling with fresh tactics being devised by culprits to beat the system.

The emergence of a phony university offering certificates after three days of training offers a fresh challenge to anti-fraud agencies in the country, just as the DCI and EACC were intensifying efforts to crack down on fake certificates.

In October 2024, EACC extended its crackdown to public officers, arresting four individuals with fake academic certificates. The offenders were employed in various government-run institutions, including schools, county governments, parastatals, and county governments.