Witness to court: Sh80m paid for Canadian visas that never materialised

Accused Brian Obare before Milimani Court/COURTESY

A prosecution witness has told a Nairobi court that more than Sh80 million was paid to an individual who allegedly posed as a Canadian embassy official to process visas that never materialised.

The move is said to have left dozens of clients stranded and facing travel bans.

Testifying before the court, Lydia Nyagala, a former employee of Golden Key Travel Consultants Limited, said the firm engaged the accused, Brian Obare, between March 2022 and November 2023 to facilitate Canadian visa applications.

She said Brian was introduced as a counsellor attached to the Canadian Embassy and first met at Embassy House in Nairobi’s central business district.

Under the arrangement, clients would pay Golden Key, which then remitted payments to Brian for visa processing.

The agreed fee per client was Sh450,000, with an initial down payment of Sh124,500, according to her testimony.

Golden Key is believed to have collected passports and supporting documents, including identity cards, birth certificates, academic documents, digital photographs, COVID-19 certificates, police clearance, and vaccination records, before forwarding them to the accused.

Lydia told the court that communication with Brian was largely through WhatsApp.

He is alleged to have sent documents purportedly for biometrics and demanded full payment, with clients surrendering their passports to him.

Despite these payments, she said none of the submitted applications resulted in successful travel to Canada. Some clients are reported to have been arrested at airports, while others were denied boarding, and some returned from Addis Ababa after transiting.

"Passports submitted were not more than 50, with stickers, but none of them were left. Some clients were arrested and advised to contact the Canadian Embassy directly, providing clear proof to the court of the failed applications," she submitted.

The witness alleged Brian later demanded an additional Sh50,000 per client, claiming he had contacts at the airport to facilitate travel.

However, the visas were eventually invalidated. Investigations confirmed that the accused had never worked for any embassy, and none of the visas were genuine.

Regarding finances, Lydia testified that cumulative payments to the accused amounted to approximately Sh82 million.

Due to lost records, the firm could only physically account for Sh51.2 million, supported by receipts and transaction records produced in court.

"We tried to confirm with the embassy, but couldn't reach them. One of our clients emailed the embassy and was emailed back, and was informed the visa was fake," she stated.

The court heard that the travel company bore the financial loss and later refunded about Sh34 million to clients after the alleged fraud came to light.

The matter was reported to Lang’ata Police Station and later investigated by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations, leading to the accused’s arrest following confirmation from the Canadian Embassy that he had no official links to the mission.

During cross-examination, defence lawyers questioned Lydia’s credibility and the internal operations of Golden Key.

When asked whether she had undergone a job interview, the witness said she did not, adding that she could not recall the recruitment process for other employees.

The company’s corporate records and the accuracy of the financial figures presented were also questioned, issues that the court is expected to determine as the trial continues.

Notably, the Defence counsel applied for the production of the witness’s national identity card.

The court allowed the application and ordered that Lydia Nyagala’s identity card be produced and marked as an exhibit, forming part of the record of the proceedings.

The accused faces charges of obtaining money by false pretences contrary to Section 313 of the Penal Code.

The accused denied the charges.

The hearing is ongoing.