Former forger who shapes ex prisoners

By Linah Benyawa

He would always be found on the court corridors either with suspects, court clerks or even prosecutors conducting ‘court business’. He was not an employee of the Judiciary and neither was he a police officer, but he was a permanent figure in the corridors of Justice in the Mombasa Law Courts.
John Nyamwea, 50, was a master forger and had helped dozens of suspects walk to freedom after issuing them with fake documents to use as bond.

Ex-prisoners admire some of the clothes they have made.

Nyamwea would sell the idea to a client and negotiate with them on the amount to be paid before preparing the necessary documents. He says this was done only to willing clients who were ready to pay. He says he would liaise with prosecutors and court clerks who would convince the court that the documents were genuine.

"We were not able to forge documents from bigger companies like KPA. But we managed to make payslips of small companies. The expert forgers used to design a payslip. He would fix a large salary so that it could appeal to the court," he adds.

Nyamwea says he at times would earn more than Sh60,000 a week from the business.

But his game was short lived. His 40 days came faster than he expected.

It happened in July 1999, when a suspect they had helped secure bond failed to appear in court prompting the court to scrutinise the documents.

"We had forged a lot of documents. When he failed to appear in court several times, the court scrutinised the documents and established that they were fake," he recalls.

Unfortunately, he had stood surety for this suspect and it, therefore, became easy for the police to nab him. The court established that he had been involved in forgery of several other documents.

"Police called several companies that I and my accomplices claimed we were working for but realised that none of us was working there. I was arrested with my three accomplices at the court corridors while negotiating with other clients," he says.

He denied the charges of forgery, but several witnesses were called to testify. They gave incriminating evidence. Nyamwea and his accomplices were found guilty and jailed for two years each. But his life in prison was not easy. He says he faced many challenges and it took him long to adjust.

"The prison’s programme was tight. We were confined in one room and the food was bad," he says.

Turning point

Nyamwea says he used to miss home and his family. "There was no freedom to move and everything I did was according to the prison’s programme," he recalls.

That marked his turning point in his life in crime and it is then that he decided to get saved.

"I had to get into salvation because prison’s life became so tough. I decided to change my life for the sake of my family," he adds.

Seeing other ex-convicts coming back to prison a few days after their release made him worried.

John Nyamwea who used to help suspects to forge documents. Photos Omondi Onyango/Standard

"I used to see some ex-convicts returning to prison. I sought to know why it was happening. They told me life outside was tough and that they faced rejection from their family members," Nyamwea says.

He also wanted to avoid being a jailbird. After leaving prison he began collecting scrap metal for sale to dealers before finally getting into tailoring business. Few volunteers gave him some equipment. After being out of prison for some time, in 2006 he decided to come up with a programme to stop ex-convicts from going back to jail and also find ways of addressing the stigma.

Changing lives

Together with his friend, Mwendwa Mwanzia, they formed an ex-prisoner’s association that was aimed at reducing stigma in the society and changing the lives of former convicts by ensuring that they embraced salvation.

Mwanzia, an ex- convict had also served a two-year jail term after he was found guilty of forging documents in 2002.

They registered the New Beginning Help Organisation in 2007 for the purpose of teaching morals to the convicts and preparing them for what to expect when they leave prison.

"When we were in prison, many ex-convicts returned with even longer sentences and that’s why we decided to come up with ways to stop it," says Mwanzia.

They started counselling the ex-convicts and put them in a place where they could start their life afresh.

"It is an institution where former prisoners put into use the skills they got in prison," adds Mwanzia.

The group has 56 members and offers tailoring services, grows tree seedling for sale and also does counselling of ex-convicts. They partner with private institutions and the prisons administration where they sell the clothing they have made at their tailoring workshop. He says they use income from the sales to build the institution.

But they face challenges like lack of funds to ensure the facility runs smoothly.

"As volunteers, our standard of living is still poor. The Government should provide half way houses where the ex-prisoners could stay for a while before they could scout for permanent residence," he added.

They plan to contribute in reducing crime in the region by spreading the anti-crime gospel.