Garissa Chief arrested for allegedly extorting money from refugees

EACC said on Tuesday that Abdirahman Shafe Yussuf, the Chief of Bulla Mzuri Location, has been demanding bribes from refugees in the ongoing de-registration of fingerprints from the UNHCR system.

"Before permitting the process, he allegedly requires every service seeker to pay him Ksh. 3000 as “consultation fee” and a further Ksh.10,000 in “facilitation fee” despite the service being free of charge," noted EACC.

All those seeking services are said to have been asked to first pay the illegal charges to the Chief’s accomplice operating from a motor vehicle parked outside the vetting hall.   

The anti-graft body said that Yussuf was caught in the act last Thursday and after a thorough search a stash of Ksh. 139,000 believed to be part of the day’s collection was recovered.

Officers also recovered a list of 85 double-registered applicants indicating the amount paid by each. 

Yussuf was processed at EACC Garissa Regional Office and freed on police bond pending finalization of the probe.  

Meanwhile, the Commission has condemned such vile action by public officers who take advantage of vulnerable service seekers for financial gain, encouraging members of the public to not shun from exposing them.