In a dramatic turn of events, justice seems to be on the horizon for Sebastian Bahati, a first-year Bachelor of Education Science student at Chuka University, who lost Ksh 9000 under mysterious circumstances. The unfolding saga took an unexpected twist, involving the Directorate of Criminal Investigation (DCI) and a reluctant suspect.
On the night of November 14th, Bahati retired early to bed, leaving three roommates awake in the hostel. Little did he know that by the morning of November 15th, he would discover three unauthorized transactions on his phone, totaling Ksh 9000. The transactions involved withdrawals and transfers to a number registered under the name Ian Ombati.
The first message was a mpesa transaction made at 12:46:42 and a sum amounting to ksh. 3800 was sent to the number registered under a name Ian Ombati. At 1:16pm another transaction was done and this time was withdrawal of ksh. 5500 from Mr. Bahati's mshwari savings account into his mpesa account. A minute later, that is at 1:17:30pm the amount was again transferred to Ian Ombati's number less by ksh. 100 which was used as the transaction cost.
Despite Bahati's efforts to determine who might have made the transactions, his roommates denied any involvement or witnessing anyone operating his phone, but according to him, he had shared his Mpesa pin and Phone unlock pattern with them. Frustrated, Bahati turned to the university administration for help.
Following a trail of transactions, the university's security department, in collaboration with the DCI officers at Chuka Police Station, identified Ian Ombati as a student awaiting graduation on November 24th. The DCI, after obtaining information from the university, traced Ombati's guardian, who provided crucial details about Ombati's whereabouts.
Summoned to the DCI office, Ombati, denied the allegations, and claimed to have lost access and ownership of the SIM card associated with the transactions. However, a thorough investigation into the transaction history revealed that the funds were transferred to another number registered under the name Orpha Onsombi.
After a rigorous one-hour interrogation, an agreement was reached between Bahati and Ombati.
Ombati agreed to repay the entire Ksh 9000 to Bahati and an additional Ksh 3000 as compensation for the expenses incurred during the pursuit of justice and was given a two-day grace period to fulfill the agreement or face potential legal consequences and jeopardize his graduation.
It still remains a puzzle on whether Ombati might have colluded with one of Bahati's roomates to commit the crime.
This case highlights the collaborative efforts between the university and law enforcement in resolving student-related disputes and ensuring justice is served.
The Writer, Ochieng Tonney is a Second Year Journalism Student at Chuka University
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