The government through the public prosecutions have dropped the case against five Mulot Gang members who were arrested on sim swap fraud.
The five who hail from Mulot were accused and charged of involvement of a mobile money transfer syndicate that involved obtaining money through swapping sim cards commonly known as Sim Swap fraud.
According to reports, the prosecution dropped the case after Safaricom and Airtel delayed to release registration details to be incorporated in evidence to be considered vital for the case.
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The five namely, Titus Chepkwony, Marcus Kipkirui Langat, Brian Kipkirui Cheruiyot, Aaron Kimutai Bett and one minor aged 17 who were charged back in December 2023 were released by the Bomet Court.
Rwports indicate that the court had given the prosecution 14 days to obtain registration and transaction records from safaricom and Airtel companies, a deadline that the prosecution faied to meet.
This comes after the police raided the suspects’ hideouts and arrested the five in possession of multiple sim cards and 11 national identity cards. In addition, they had exercise books with personal information and financial information of different individuals.
The details included Mpwsa balances, Fuliza Limits and Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) Mpesa loan limits of different kenyans with whom they had or they were planning to defraud.
State counsel Clara Boyon informed Bomet resident magistrate Mbethyl Michuki that unavailability of crucial data from both safaricom and Airtel makes the investigations incomplete thus making the case vulnerable.
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“We don’t want to hold the suspects any further as we do not know when the information from Safaricom and Airtel will be available. We pray that the suslects be released and the miscellaneous file is closed.”
The request by the prosecution was granted by the court which then confirms a setback in the fight against cybercrime in the region.