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Mudavadi exposes how fraudulent online job offers trap Kenyans overseas
12th November, 2025 08:55 PM
Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has raised an alarm over the risk of Kenyans being rescued from cyberscam networks abroad, bringing the vice back home.
In a press briefing on Quarterly Status of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday, November 12, 2025, Mudavadi revealed that intelligence reports had shown that some Kenyans lured to Southeast Asia for fake job offers later became complicit in organised scams.
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“It is a sophisticated menace where our citizens, often lured by fraudulent job advertisements and agents purportedly in places like Thailand, are trafficked to South East Asia for exploitation, including forced labour, online scamming, illegal cryptocurrency trade, and even organ harvesting,” he stated.
Mudavadi cited the case of a Kenyan man who was arrested again in Thailand for entering the country using fake documents, despite having been successfully repatriated by the Kenyan government previously.
“This shows that some of the victims are not innocent and are part of the criminal network. A major concern is that rescued individuals pose a national threat by potentially establishing scam operations in Kenya upon their return. Recommendations that we make focus on a nationwide awareness campaign, strengthening legal frameworks, and enhancing victim support and integration,” Mudavadi added.
Mudavadi said that since July 2022, the Kenyan Embassy in Bangkok has rescued and facilitated the repatriation of approximately 500 Kenyan victims.
The Embassy is accredited to several countries in the region, including Thailand and Myanmar, where many of the cases have been reported.
Also watch: Mudavadi cautions youth: “Kenyan constitution ends at the border”
Rescuing Kenyans abroad
Currently, 126 Kenyans are awaiting repatriation, 69 in Thailand and 57 in Myanmar, while others remain under the control of local militia groups.
He noted that the rescue and repatriation efforts continue despite logistical and diplomatic challenges.
According to the CS, a recent media report highlighted the case of a Kenyan arrested at a Thai airport for using a fake immigration stamp.
Beyond rescue operations, Mudavadi revealed that the government would shift focus to curing the cycle of recruitment and re-trafficking through a nationwide awareness campaign to educate job seekers on the risks of fraudulent overseas recruitment.
Notably, Kenya has also moved to strengthen its diplomatic presence in the Middle East after the Cabinet approved plans to open a new embassy in Hanoi, Vietnam. This will be the fourth in South East Asia after one in Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, and Jakarta.
Also watch: Uasin Gishu residents accuse government of inaction against rogue overseas job agents
The move follows a string of high-profile consular cases, including one where a toddler was repatriated from Indonesia, where the mother is facing imprisonment.
Mudavadi said the individual had previously been rescued from a scam compound and repatriated in March 2025, but later illegally re-entered Thailand to work for a scam company in Myanmar.
After a crackdown by regional authorities, he was arrested while attempting to fly home.
“This is a case to show that some of the victims are not innocent but part of the criminal network. 5 16. A major concern is that rescued individuals, now trained in cybercrime, pose a national security risk by potentially establishing scam operations in Kenya upon their return,” the report read.
“Recommendations focus on a nationwide awareness campaign, strengthening legal frameworks, and enhancing victim support and integration. Officials expressed deep concern that some returnees, having been trained in sophisticated cybercrime techniques, could establish similar scam operations in Kenya.”
