Gold Scam: Suspect in Court for Alleged Ksh 78 Million Fraud of Foreign National

An alleged gold scammer has been charged in a Milimani court with defrauding a foreign businessman of Ksh 78 million in the guise of selling him gold.

Duncan Okonji Okaka appeared before the Milimani Principal Magistrate Paul Mutai on Wednesday and denied the charge of conspiracy to defraud that was levelled against him.

The prosecution told the court that on diverse dates between January 19 and February 12, 2026, within Nairobi County, jointly with others not before the court, conspired to defraud Andrew Gaballa of USD 600,000 (Ksh ) in the pretence that he was in a position to sell 590 kilograms of gold, a fact he knew to be false.

The accused, whom police claim to be a fake gold merchant, committed the offences on diverse dates between January 19 and February 12, 2026, within Nairobi County, jointly with others not before the court.

After denying the charges, the accused, who was arrested on March 24 and released on a police cash bail of Sh 100,000, sought to be released on bail pending trial.

However, the prosecution opposed the request by the accused person to be released on bail issued by police arguing that the amount involved in the alleged fraud was substantial and denominated in US dollars.

The court subsequently revised the terms, releasing the accused on a bond of Sh5 million or an alternative cash bail of Sh1 million, with two contact persons required.

According to investigators from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations, the case stems from a complaint lodged by an Australian national, Gaballa, who was allegedly lured into a fake gold transaction.

Investigations reveal that in October 2025, the complainant, while in Dubai, was introduced to a man identified as Marshall Morrison, who allegedly posed as an American investor.

Morrison is said to have linked the complainant to Okonji, who purported to facilitate the sale of 590 kilograms of gold.

The victim was reportedly flown to Tanzania and shown what were presented as gold mining sites before being brought to Kenya, where a series of meetings and documents were allegedly staged to convince him that the deal was legitimate.

Believing the transaction to be genuine, the complainant is said to have transferred USD 600,000 through a law firm of a prominent advocate in the city before later suspecting fraud and reporting the matter to authorities.

The case is scheduled for mention on April 7, 2026, for a pre-trial conference hearing.