Detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations' (DCI) Operation Support Unit (OSU) arrested a suspected SIM-swap fraudster on Saturday, accused of stealing Sh450,500 from a Kenyan woman who had enrolled in Safaricom's Daima programme while working in the United States.
According to investigators, the suspect, identified as Oscar Livondo, was arrested in Nairobi's Ngumba Estate following months of investigations into the alleged theft.
The case dates back to January 2019 when the victim travelled to the USA in pursuit of employment opportunities. Before leaving Kenya, she enrolled in Safaricom's Daima programme "to keep her Safaricom line alive for seamless M-Pesa transactions while abroad", ensuring that the line would remain active even without network connectivity.
Police said the SIM card functioned normally until May 24,2024, when "all cellular and M-Pesa services ceased". Upon returning to Kenya in December 2024, the woman discovered that her SIM card had allegedly been swapped without her knowledge or consent.
Expecting to find savings amounting to approximately Sh450,500 in her M-Pesa account, she instead found a balance of only Sh18.
Investigators said they uncovered "a web of deceit" which revealed that on October 15,2024, the Sh450,500 had been transferred from the victim's account in two transactions to a mobile number registered under Livondo's name.
Detectives subsequently launched a manhunt that led them to the suspect's hideout in Ngumba Estate, where he was arrested.
"A swift search of his house revealed two mobile phones and six SIM card holders," the DCI said in its statement.
Livondo is currently in police custody undergoing processing ahead of his arraignment in court.
The arrest comes as authorities intensify efforts to combat increasingly sophisticated mobile money fraud schemes, including SIM-swap scams that exploit unsuspecting subscribers and compromise access to their M-Pesa accounts.