Nairobi — At least 26 people, among them chiefs, clerks, and officers from key government departments, are set to face charges after being arrested for facilitating the illegal and unprocedural issuance of critical government documents.
The multi-agency operation, described by investigators as meticulously coordinated and intelligence-driven, targeted a sprawling network responsible for unlawfully acquiring National Identity Cards, Passports, Birth Certificates, and Foreigner/Alien ID Cards, among other sensitive documents.
The two-day crackdown netted civil servants from the National Registration Bureau (NRB), the Directorate of Immigration Services, and local administrators -- including chiefs -- alongside middlemen and financiers who allegedly fast-tracked document issuance through corrupt channels.
Investigators say the network brazenly bypassed standard procedures, exploiting their access and authority to irregularly register individuals and issue documents that should only be processed through official verification systems.
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Authorities warn that the criminal enterprise has far-reaching implications, compromising national security and enabling undocumented individuals to enter or exit the country without trace.
During the operation, detectives seized a large cache of government documents and registration tools found concealed in several suspects' homes -- materials that legally should only be stored in secure government offices.
Recovered items include filled and blank National ID application forms, fingerprint-taking equipment (slabs, rollers, and related instruments), birth and death certificates, passports, official government stamps and other registration materials used in processing identity documents
The suspects arrested in the sting operation include Judy Kemunto Ondari (Registrar of Persons, Embakasi), Moses Mugoya Margaret (Clerk, Registrar of Persons Head Office (NSSF Building), Ruth Osebe Sukuru (Registrar of Persons, Kamukunji), Jawahir Mohamed Muse (Assistant Chief, Eastleigh North), Moulid Yusuf Dige (Businessman), Mohamed Issack Gedow (Assistant Chief, Eastleigh).
Others are Abdirizak Osman Rage - Freelance middleman, Alfred Opia Ayaway - Freelance middleman, Abdirizak Abdi - Electronics technician, Abdirashid Mohamed Ali - Clerk, Shima Group International, Festus Bahati Chai - Fingerprints Technician, Registrar of Persons Head Office, Abdirizack Bashir Farah - Freelance middleman, Samatar Osman Robne - Businessman, Fuadh Bulle Mohamed - Businessman, Geoffrey Mokoro Mutanya - Clerk, Immigration Head Office and Joseph Mwendwa Munyithia - Registrar of Persons, Kariokor.
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All suspects are currently being detained as multi-agency teams proceed with processing ahead of formal arraignment.
Police said the operation underscores the government's resolve to protect the integrity of national registration systems and dismantle cartels that illegally profit from identity-document fraud.
Investigations are ongoing, with detectives warning that more arrests may follow as the wider network is unraveled.
Security officials are also probing allegations that some officers have colluded with foreigners to illegally enter the country -- and failed to repatriate individuals already declared unlawfully present by the courts.
