Court orders probe into alleged M-Pesa fraud linked to police handling of evidence

The directive was issued by Magistrate BenMark Ekhubi following an application by police officer Charles Lotira, who is among several accused persons charged with engaging in organised criminal activities in Turkana, including allegedly selling ammunition for financial gain.

The accused have all denied the charges.

Through his lawyer Danstan Omari, Lotira told the court that his mobile phone was seized by authorities during investigations and later returned.

However, he claimed that during the period it was in police custody, officers had been given access to his PIN.

Upon the phone's return, Lotira allegedly discovered that over Ksh.30,000 had been withdrawn from his M-Pesa Fuliza account without his authorisation.

His lawyer argued that the incident raises grave concerns about how sensitive digital information is handled by law enforcement, suggesting possible breaches in the chain of custody and lapses in mobile money security.

In response, Magistrate Ekhubi ordered the investigating officer to present a detailed explanation of how the account was compromised, including identifying who accessed the funds and how the PIN was exposed.

Lotira is also seeking to have mobile service providers summoned to produce transaction records and clarify how the withdrawals occurred.