Friday’s edition of The Standard leads with a hard-hitting exposé on Kenya’s growing reputation as fertile ground for organised gold scams, anchored on a Sh37 million fraud case involving foreign investors.
What began as a seemingly legitimate gold transaction, the paper reports, unraveled into a sophisticated con built on forged licences, staged security details and fake gold vaults.
The investigation lays bare an underground syndicate that allegedly operates in plain sight, exploiting regulatory loopholes and weak enforcement.
According to The Standard, the scammers use theatrical displays of legitimacy to lure unsuspecting investors, raising serious questions about oversight in the country’s lucrative but opaque gold trade.
A key concern highlighted is impunity. While detectives are closing in on suspects in the latest case, the paper notes a troubling pattern: arrests are often made, yet convictions remain rare.
Previous suspects linked to similar schemes have avoided long prison terms, prompting public frustration over why such crimes rarely end in Kamiti or Kodiaga.
The story situates the scam within a broader governance challenge, pointing to institutional failures that allow organised fraud to persist despite repeated exposure.
For a country seeking to attract foreign investment, The Standard warns that unchecked gold scams risk damaging Kenya’s credibility and investor confidence.
The report is a strong call for accountability, urging authorities to move beyond arrests to secure convictions and dismantle the networks behind the fraud.
It is a reminder that without decisive action, high-profile scams will continue to thrive—at great economic and reputational cost.