A suspected cybercriminal has been arraigned at the Milimani Law Courts after detectives linked him to a sophisticated digital fraud.

This drained over Ksh 52 million from a payment service provider, a local bank, and a SACCO in June 2025.

Albert Komen Kipkechem, also known as Jonathan Kiptum Barmasai, faces charges of unlawful access with intent to commit a further offence and computer fraud under the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act No. 5 of 2018.

He pleaded not guilty and was remanded at Capitol Hill Police Station until March 12, 2026, when the court will rule on his bail and bond terms.

Upon receiving reports from the affected institutions, detectives from the Economic and Commercial Crimes Unit attached to the Cyber Fusion Unit at the Central Bank of Kenya swung into action, working alongside specialists from the National Forensic Laboratory and the Crime Research and Intelligence Bureau.

Investigations revealed that Kipkechem used remote access software to infiltrate the payment platform and bank information systems, executing unauthorised transactions that bypassed normal payment protocols entirely.

After obtaining the necessary court orders and search warrants, detectives arrested him in Thome, Nairobi, before escorting him to his Nakuru residence where a telling haul of evidence awaited them.

Recovered items included electronic gadgets, fraudulently registered identity cards, a money counting machine, Kenyan currency, assorted SIM cards, and ATM cards registered under other people’s names.

Perhaps most revealing was the discovery of a Congolese passport and identity card bearing Kipkechem’s photograph but registered under the name Katempa Ngoy Alexisa, pointing to a carefully constructed false identity designed to evade detection.

The case returns to court on March 12, 2026.