Matatu driver in trouble for spending Sh110k mistakenly sent to him via M-Pesa
A matatu driver who allegedly spent Sh110,000 erroneously sent to his M-Pesa account is facing charges of unlawful retention of electronic money contrary to section 35 of the computer misuse and cybercrimes Act of 2018.
Mr Geoffrey Waiyaki has been charged with retaining the cash delivered to him via bank transfer by Ms Lilian Muthoni on October 8, 2022 – which Ms Muthoni wanted to transfer to her M-Pesa account.
Ms Muthoni had withdrawn the cash from her bank intending to deposit the same to her M-Pesa account but entered one wrong digit and the money went to Mr Waiyaki.
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Ms Muthoni contacted the bank which reached out to Safaricom PLC to have the transaction reversed but the same failed as the money had already been withdrawn.
The complainant called the accused person but he declined to pick calls and he also did not reply texts to his phone. He later switched off his phone.
She reported the matter to the police and the suspect was traced to Masimba area in Kayole where he was allegedly hiding before he was arrested on Saturday January 14, 2023.
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Mr Waiyaki admitted that he received and spent the money but claimed he had a sick brother he was taking care of. He also claimed that he had neither gone into hiding nor switched off his phone after receiving the money.
The accused pleaded guilty to the charges before the Makadara Law Courts, but denied facts of the case prompting Senior Resident Magistrate Mercy Malingu to record that he had denied the charges. The accused person was released on a cash bail of Sh70,000.
The magistrate ordered for a social inquiry report of Mr Waiyaki be tabled before the court after the suspect requested for a review of the cash bail terms. The case will be mentioned on February 23, 2023 before hearing starts on March 23, 2023.
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