By Robert Mutasi 
Uasin Gishu County Police Commander Wilberforce Sicharani has announced a major breakthrough in the fight against fake currency after police in Eldoret intercepted a vehicle carrying suspected counterfeit US dollars worth millions and arrested one suspect.
Speaking in Eldoret on Monday evening, the county police boss said officers acting on intelligence intercepted the vehicle and recovered approximately 2.6 million US dollars in fake notes, which translates to about Ksh 334 million in Kenyan currency.
“We have tried to count approximately two million six hundred fifteen thousand US dollars. We have tried to count, we found two million nine hundred ninety… If we convert it into Kenyan money it is million three hundred thirty four,” Commander Sicharani told journalists.
The operation, which is linked to a cross-county syndicate operating between Kisumu and Eldoret, also led to the recovery of fake Kenyan currency and bundles of plain papers suspected to be used for manufacturing counterfeit money.
“Also inside there we found papers for making three thousand two hundred sixty seven money,” Sicharani said, adding that the materials are commonly used by fraudsters to con unsuspecting businesspeople in wash-wash scams.
According to the commander, the recovered cash is suspected to be fake and will be subjected to forensic verification at the Central Bank of Kenya.
“This money we suspect is not legal money and we have one suspect and he continues to assist us in a state of investigation. We want to send to the experts where it is Central Bank of Kenya so they can help us verify,” he said.
Sicharani said the suspect in custody is helping detectives unravel the network behind the syndicate, including identifying who hired the vehicle that was intercepted. He said police will use technology to trace all individuals who were inside the car and who facilitated its hire in Kisumu.
“We will know who went to hire this vehicle there in Kisumu. Technology will help us know who was inside that car,” he said.
The commander added that the suspect will be taken to court to allow detectives more time to complete investigations.
“That suspect, because we are continuing with the investigation, we will take him to court so that we get a few days that is so that we complete our investigation,” he explained.
At the same time, Sicharani issued a strong warning to Eldoret residents, especially traders, land sellers and boda boda operators who handle large cash transactions, to be extra cautious when receiving dollars or huge amounts of Kenyan shillings.
“Our citizens in the city of Eldoret should be very careful when they are given money or when they receive money like this. They went and were told and they got money which is bad,” he cautioned.
The seizure is the latest in a series of operations led by Sicharani since he took over as Uasin Gishu County Commander in May 2026 after serving as Gigiri Sub-County Police Commander in Nairobi. He replaced Benjamin Mwanthi who was promoted to Traffic Commandant.
Police have urged the public to report any suspicious cash deals to the nearest police station.
Eldoret Leo