16 foreigners arrested for acquiring Kenyan identity cards illegally

Two employees of the National Registration Bureau (NRB) and 16 foreigners have been arrested in an operation on illegal acquisition of Kenyan documents by immigrants.

The two identified as Linet Omare Nyaboke and Joyce Kwamboka Mokua were arrested in Eastleigh area and Dadaab respectively. 16 foreigners including 13 Somali refugees were also nabbed in Eastleigh after being linked to the scam.

Police say the two NRB staff were selling the documents including identity cards to the foreigners.

This follows increased reports of terror suspects accessing Kenyan documents fraudulently.

Officials launched operations to identify persons connected with the illegal document facilitation to refugees and aliens.

Nyaboke works at NRB headquarters, NSSF building in Nairobi.

"She was arrested in Eastleigh, Nairobi on November 27, 2016 in an operation that also led to the arrest of 16 other suspects of whom 13 were Somali refugees," police said.

A search revealed government documents, a number of alien cards, money, passport photos and biographic details of aliens who had sought her services. Nyaboke was Monday scheduled to face charges document fraud, abuse of office and facilitating terrorism.

The aliens that were arrested alongside Nyaboke will also be charged with being in the country illegally and await deportation.

The operation also led to the arrest of another NRB staff in Dadaab who will also be presented in court.

"These arrests are a clear sign that those who will provide facilitation to terrorists will face the full force of the law," said an official aware of the operation.

Police say some of those who get the documents fraudulently are terrorists who turn against Kenyans and attack them. They cited two cases in which some of those who had obtained the documents were involved in terror activities.