Eldoret: Suspected Land Fraudster Arrested, Arraigned in Court

DCI headquarters along Kiambu road //Photo courtesy

A notorious land fraud suspect was on Monday February 3, arraigned at Eldoret Law Courts after he was arrested in connection with a fraudulent scheme targeting prime land in Eldoret township.

According to a report by the Director of Criminal Investigations (DCI) the suspect , William Kimei Tanui, faces multiple charges, including conspiracy to defraud, perjury and obtaining land registration through misrepresentation of facts in court.

Kimei’s arrest on Friday, January 31, 2025, followed a complaint by a distressed landowner in Pioneer, Eldoret South, whose efforts to reclaim and develop her 0.0929-hectare property had been thwarted by threats from Kimei and a network of fraudsters.

Investigations, according to the police, revealed that on October 16, 2023, Kimei had filed an affidavit in the High Court falsely claiming to have occupied the land since 1971. This misrepresentation led the court to declare him the genuine owner of the prime parcel, valued at approximately KSh 50 million.

Further inquiries uncovered a parallel fraudulent scheme involving two other suspects, Margaret Jemutai Kangogo and Zendera Kiplagat Biwott, who had also moved to a lower court on January 25, 2023.

The duo jointly sworn affidavits claiming to have occupied the same land since 1999. Their deception secured a court decree on May 10, 2023, which they used to initiate the process of acquiring official land ownership documents from the Ministry of Lands.

However, their fraudulent activities collided with Kimei’s claims, sparking an internal dispute among the suspects. The landowner, realizing she legally owned the land only on paper but had no control over it, sought police intervention.

While Kimei was eventually traced and arrested,his two accomplices Kangogo and Biwott remain at large. Authorities have issued arrest warrants for the two suspects.

During his court appearance, Kimei pleaded not guilty to all charges and was released on a KSh 200,000 bond with an alternative cash bail of KSh 50,000. The case will be mentioned on February 17, 2025.

Authorities have urged landowners to be vigilant against fraudsters exploiting the legal system to illegally acquire property.