The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) has arrested 26 people in a major operation targeting a sophisticated criminal network involved in the illegal issuance of government documents. The suspects include civil servants, local administrators, and middlemen believed to have played different roles in the elaborate scheme.

The arrests followed a two-day coordinated sting operation conducted primarily in Nairobi. Key areas of focus included Eastleigh, Embakasi, Kamukunji, and several government offices suspected to have been compromised. Investigators say the operation was the result of months of intelligence gathering and surveillance aimed at dismantling the syndicate.

According to the DCI, the network facilitated the fraudulent acquisition of critical government documents such as national identity cards, passports, birth certificates, and foreigner-cum-alien ID cards.

Those arrested include employees from the National Registration Bureau and the Directorate of Immigration, as well as local chiefs, businessmen, and freelance brokers who allegedly linked clients to corrupt officials.

During searches carried out at the suspects’ homes and other locations, detectives recovered numerous items used in the forgery and illegal processing of documents. These included filled and blank ID application forms, fingerprint-taking equipment and slabs, official government stamps, as well as blank certificates and passports.

Authorities have described the scheme as a serious threat to national security, noting that the illegal issuance of identification documents undermines the integrity of government systems.

Of particular concern is the possibility that undocumented foreigners could have fraudulently acquired Kenyan documents, potentially enabling illegal registration as voters ahead of the 2027 General Election.

All the suspects are currently in custody and are being processed by a multi-agency investigative team ahead of their arraignment at the Kahawa Law Courts. Investigations are ongoing as detectives pursue additional leads to establish the full scope of the network.

The DCI has urged members of the public with information related to the operation to report anonymously through its toll-free hotline as efforts continue to dismantle the wider criminal network.