Two men charged over possession of dozens of national ID Cards, hundreds of SIM cards

Two men allegedly found with dozens of national identity cards and hundreds of SIM cards suspected to be stolen have been charged with conveying or possessing suspected stolen or unlawfully obtained property, contrary to Section 323 of the Penal Code.

The accused, Samuel Mwangangi Mutiso and Peter Mutua Muli, were arrested in different locations within Kasarani Sub-County, Nairobi.

Mutiso is accused of being in possession of 37 national ID cards belonging to members of the public, and 224 Airtel SIM cards, reasonably suspected to be stolen or unlawfully obtained. He was allegedly found with the items at his house in Githurai 44 on August 4.

His co-accused, Muli, was allegedly found with 52 national ID cards and 128 Airtel SIM cards, also suspected to be stolen or unlawfully obtained. He was arrested in the Zimmerman area of Kasarani Sub-County after Mwangangi implicated him during police questioning.

Police officers had gone to Mutiso’s residence to arrest him after he was reported for fraudulently obtaining money by false pretences. Following interrogation, officers searched his home and allegedly recovered the IDs and SIM cards. He then revealed Muli’s involvement in similar activities, leading police to Muli’s home, where he was also arrested.

The two do not deny being in possession of the IDs and SIM cards but insist they are not stolen, claiming they were working for a contracted registration agent. They told Senior Resident Magistrate Stephanie Bett that they are licensed to register new subscribers and that the items were in their custody for work purposes.

The fraud case involving Mutiso is still under investigation, and police are also probing whether any crimes were committed using SIM cards registered with any of the IDs allegedly found in the suspects’ possession.

Mutiso and Muli were initially arrested alongside Wanjiku Kimani, the wife of another suspect who remains at large. Kimani told the court she was in custody because her husband went into hiding, leaving her in the house where some of the suspected stolen items were found. The mother of an infant told the court that she had no involvement in the alleged crimes.

Police did not charge Ms Kimani. Mutiso and Muli were released on a bond of Sh200,000 or an alternative cash bail of Sh100,000. The case will be mentioned on October 10 for a pre-trial.

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