Fake gold /FILE
Detectives are investigating an incident where a Dutch national was attacked and robbed of Sh3.6 million in a fake gold deal in Kakamega Town.
The foreigner had been dramatically lured from his comfort zone in Dubai to Kakamega, where the incident happened.
Officials linked the incident to the urge for cheap minerals, especially gold.
The incident happened last Wednesday in a building where the foreigner had been driven to.
The victim is the latest to fall into the trap of gold scammers, who are changing tactics on a daily basis amid police operations to tame the trend.
According to the police, the victim traveled from Dubai to Nairobi, then flew to Kisumu before he was picked up to visit an alleged gold site in Ikolomani, Kakamega.
He told police he met an alleged gold handler online who identified himself as only Smith and who claimed to possess gold in Ikolomani subcounty.
He persuaded him to travel to learn how to sell the gold in Dubai. The foreigner travelled to Kenya and then to Ikolomani through the Kisumu International Airport.
He was met by the said Smith and another individual, who boarded a blue car on Wednesday evening to Kakamega town with a bag containing the cash and other valuables.
He was later taken to a building where he was attacked by three men who overpowered him and robbed him of $29,950 and later abandoned him at Kisumu International Airport, where he reported the incident.
During the robbery, the foreigner sustained bruises on his face and experienced general body pains.
He received medical attention from Port Health and was discharged in fair condition.
Police said they are investigating the saga.
Many foreigners have been conned out of their money over fake gold deals in recent times.
Police have asked authorities to classify the trend as a threat to national security and a serious crime.
This is the latest recovery of fake gold being made in a series of police operations in the country.
Police say most suspects have been arrested and arraigned, and their cases remain active in courts.
The operations have been mounted in the past years after many foreigners complained they had been scammed in the city.
Nairobi was increasingly turning to be the hub for fake gold deals, which prompted the operations.
Police say they have dozens of cases of complaints from foreigners, who say they had been conned by Kenyans pretending to be selling gold.
In efforts to address the trend, the DCI asked embassies in the country to join the fight against the crime.
“We urge the embassies to advise their nationals coming in for business to be apprised of the con business of gold going on in the country,” the DCI said.
