Arrest illustration
A graduation ceremony in Mombasa County, came to an abrupt stop on Saturday after detectives moved in over concerns about accreditation.
There was no immediate response from the institution at the time, as the officials involved were in custody.
Officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Serious Crime Unit, working with officials from the Commission for University Education (CUE), halted the event after receiving reports that it was allegedly being conducted by an unaccredited institution.
According to the DCI, the ceremony was already underway when officers arrived and stopped it to establish whether the organisers had the required approval to award academic qualifications.
Detectives said the organisers and officials of the graduation ceremony were asked to present accreditation documents from CUE. The documents were not provided at the time, raising concerns about the legality of the graduation.
Preliminary findings showed that institution is registered with the Technical and Vocational Education and Training Authority (TVETA) to offer courses up to diploma level only, the DCI said.
DCi said further checks of the graduation list raised additional concerns.
The list included individuals set to receive degree and master’s certificates, qualifications that the institution is not authorised to award under its current registration.
Following the incident, several officials linked to the ceremony were taken into custody to assist with investigations.
The DCI said those held were being processed pending court proceedings.
The DCI said investigations are ongoing and urged Kenyans to confirm the accreditation status of institutions before enrolling, noting that proper verification helps protect students from potential loss of time and resources
