22-Year-Old Sugoi Musician Impersonating Gachagua Arrested

A 22-year-old man is in custody after he impersonated Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua and fraudulently obtained an unknown amount of money. 

The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) revealed on Monday, December 19 that Collins Kipleting Serem alias Rengstar, a benga artist based in Kamplemur village in Sugoi, was arrested after he created a fake Facebook account bearing the Deputy President’s name.

Afterwards, he proceeded to obtain money from unsuspecting netizens, allegedly meant for feeding Kenyans facing hunger.

Rengstar who was arrested for impersonating DP Gachagua. /DCI

The suspect published a pay bill number connected to an account at a local bank in Eldoret and appealed to his over 14,000 followers to come together and raise funds for the victims of hunger, promising God’s blessings to those who would heed the appeal.

"Good evening Kenyans should we gather something for our fellow Kenyans suffering from drought? Let us come together and do a public Harambee for them it will assist them for some time be blessed so much as we support them," read the posts from the impersonator.

Sleuths attached to the Deputy President’s office launched a manhunt for the suspect and arrested him in Sugoi, Uasin Gishu county.

DCI had also accused the young man of spreading fake news about the appointment of former Kenya National Union of Teachers, secretary-general, Wilson Sossion as the new CEO of the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) in November 2022.

“My attention has been drawn to social media fake reporting that I have been appointed TSC CEO. This is not true.

"TSC CEO is appointed through competitive advertising when a vacancy arises. Please ignore such rumours,” Sossion stated on Thursday, November 11.

Sossion was rumoured to replace Nancy Macharia in the position, but Macharia's term was extended in 2020 by five years and will last until 2025.

Other than posts of the Deputy President in different public events, the young man also posted his music videos, among other controversial posts. 

Former President Uhuru Kenyatta in 2018 signed the new Computer and Cybercrimes Bill into law in 2018, which sought to crack down on Kenyans sharing false information on social media.

Under the law, a person who intentionally publishes false, misleading or fictitious data or misinforms with the intent that the data shall be considered or acted upon as authentic, with or without any financial gain, commits an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable to a fine not exceeding Ksh5million or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years, or to both.

It also states that if one unlawfully obtains data or performs a prohibited act in order to gain access to critical data with the intention to directly or indirectly benefit a foreign state against the Republic of Kenya, commits an offence and is liable, on conviction, to imprisonment for a period not exceeding twenty years or to a fine not exceeding Ksh10 million, or to both.

Former President Uhuru Kenyatta signing into law, The Veterans Bill 2022, on June 15, 2022. /PSCU