M-Pesa agent loses Sh369,000 to fraudsters in Mombasa
What you need to know:
County police commander Johnston Ipara said police are looking for the men who were captured on a CCTV camera during the 7pm incident.
According to the M-Pesa shop agent Patrick Mwangi Kamau, one man approached him in the pretext of buying water.
He said they distracted me while one of them took the M-Pesa phone and transferred money to a number of people.
Police in Mombasa are investigating how three men defrauded an M-Pesa agent of Sh369,000 in Tudor on Sunday evening.
County police commander Johnston Ipara said police are looking for the men who were captured on a CCTV camera during the 7pm incident.
“We are also investigating how they got the M-Pesa agent’s PIN,” Mr Ipara said.
According to the M-Pesa shop agent Patrick Mwangi Kamau, one man approached him in the pretext of buying water. He then asked for the cost of the empty plastic bottles while his accomplices walked in and also pretended they wanted to buy groceries.
PHONE SNATCHERS
“They distracted me while one of them took the M-Pesa phone and transferred money to a number of people,” Mr Mwangi told the Nation.
He says he is still puzzled how they managed to get the PIN.
Mr Mwangi said Safaricom was able to freeze Sh180,000 in the agent’s account.
Police say they are tracking the numbers that received the money.
Mr Ipara also said police have cracked down on criminals using boda bodas in Likoni, Nyali and Kisauni, and panga-wielding gangs in Kisauni.
“Mobile phone snatchers who were common in Haile Selassie, Moi and Digo roads have also been arrested,” Mr Ipara noted.
