Detectives have uncovered a phone theft and hacking syndicate in Kisii after raiding a repair shop and recovering more than 500 assorted mobile phones and motherboards.The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), in a statement, said the operation was conducted by detectives from Kisii Central in collaboration with fraud investigators from a mobile phone financing company.DCI officers arrested two suspects during the raid at a shop in Market Plaza, Kisii town, who remain in custody awaiting their expected arraignment as investigations continue.“A phone theft and hacking racket operating under the guise of a phone repair business has been cracked open in Kisii town, after detectives from DCI Kisii Central teamed up with fraud investigators, netting two suspects accused of stealing and unlawfully unlocking financed mobile devices,” the statement read.Police said the premises were allegedly being used to receive stolen phones and unlawfully unlock financed devices. Among the recovered items were several smartphones financed by the company that had previously been reported missing. According to the directorate, the phones were allegedly being prepared for resale after the restrictions linked to their financing were removed. During the operation, investigators found that some of the devices had already been stripped of their security locks. The large cache of devices and separate phone components is now being examined as detectives trace their source and intended market. The arrests come as police intensify investigations into organised networks behind the rising cases of theft and reselling of mobile phones.In an August operation in Nairobi, police recovered 38 phones, three laptops and a desktop computer from a stall in the Central Business District (CBD). Authorities said they will continue targeting outlets suspected of providing a market for stolen electronics and urged members of the public to verify their purchases.
This page contains an attributed headline and the preview text supplied through the publisher’s RSS feed. Copyright in the original reporting belongs to Kenyans.co.ke.
