A high-profile overseas jobs programme that promised thousands of Kenyans a pathway to employment abroad has instead triggered one of the country’s most significant fraud investigations, placing Worthstart founder James Wanjohi at the centre of a widening scandal.
Investigators from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) have linked Wanjohi to an alleged scheme that reportedly defrauded more than 4,000 job seekers of over KSh600 million.
The victims, many of them young graduates and unemployed professionals, are said to have paid between KSh100,000 and KSh140,000 in processing fees for jobs in countries including Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
According to investigators, the operation followed a consistent pattern. Prospective applicants were lured through aggressive marketing campaigns promising quick placements abroad.
Once recruited, they were required to pay visa facilitation and processing fees.
However, after payments were made, communication allegedly became irregular, with some victims being informed their applications had failed, while others received no response at all.
The scale of the alleged fraud prompted a multi-agency crackdown. DCI officers raided Worthstart offices located at Pension Towers in Nairobi, seizing documents, computers, and financial records believed to be critical to the investigation.
Several company directors and employees were arrested during the operation, as authorities intensified efforts to trace the flow of funds and identify potential accomplices.
At the height of the probe, Wanjohi was listed as a wanted suspect, with authorities moving to restrict his travel amid concerns he could flee the country.
Investigators also signaled intentions to pursue assets suspected to have been acquired using proceeds of crime, marking a significant escalation in the case.
In a dramatic turn, Wanjohi later presented himself to authorities and secured anticipatory bail of KSh100,000.
His legal team maintained that he was cooperating fully with investigators, even as authorities indicated that formal charges would depend on the outcome of ongoing inquiries.
The case has also drawn attention to regulatory gaps within Kenya’s overseas employment sector.
Authorities noted that Worthstart was not registered with the relevant government body mandated to oversee recruitment agencies, raising questions about how the company was able to operate at such scale without regulatory oversight.
This is not the first time Wanjohi has faced legal trouble.
In 2022, he was charged in a separate case involving the alleged theft of a motor vehicle, further complicating his public profile as both a businessman and a religious figure.
Despite the mounting allegations, Wanjohi has consistently denied any wrongdoing.
He has described the claims as false and politically motivated, insisting that Worthstart operates as a legitimate visa facilitation firm rather than a recruitment agency.
He has also disputed the scale of the alleged fraud, arguing that the company’s operational timeline does not support claims of collecting hundreds of millions of shillings.
For many victims, however, the damage is already done. Families report selling land, taking loans, and depleting savings in pursuit of opportunities that never materialised.