The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | At least 280 Ugandans have lost more than 180 million shillings in an online job scam.
The victims who are aged 18 to 30 years are crying foul after they were defrauded money ranging from 600,000 shillings to one million shillings as medical and Interpol expenses for interview jobs in Uganda and other Arab cities like Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
It all started when a Facebook page dubbed Reliant Recruiters International-RRI was created and started announcing quick local and international job opportunities. In a space of less than two months, RRI had received dozens of followers.
Agnes Igoye, who is spearheading the investigations on the side of the anti-human trafficking department at the Ministry of Internal Affairs, says by the time the page was suspiciously pulled down a few weeks ago, it had more than 1,000 followers.
Over 200 complaints have been filed by victims at the ministry, Nateete and Nalukolongo police stations. Venis Baguma Tumuhimbise, the coordinator of anti-human trafficking at the Ministry of Internal Affairs has tasked Igoye to work with detectives at Criminal Investigations Directorate after it emerged that Nateete and Nalukolongo have reportedly been frustrating the victims.
Maggie Nanteza, one of the victims said they were promised a free Visa to Dubai, but after reaching RRI offices which were at Makanga House in Nalukolongo, they were informed that they needed to pay for medical tests and Interpol services.
According to some of the receipts which have already been obtained by Igoye and her team, the least amount each of the victims paid was 600,000 shillings on the promise that they were to fly out of the country in two weeks.
But to their shock, RRI bosses who have since been identified as Grace Nankya and Bernard Kyenzeni stopped picking their calls when the two weeks elapsed. Natenza and others decided to visit Makanga house where they received the bitter news that RRI had shifted to an unknown place.
Igoye and her team have since established that people fell victim because they were promised a monthly salary of 1.5 million shillings on top of a free Visa. Many of the victims have indicated that they were working in local companies and organisations but they were laid off during the first Covid-19 lockdown.
“I was working but I lost the job. But when this opportunity came, I visited their offices and I confirmed that they existed. I was attracted by the free Visa and the 700,000 shillings for medical and Interpol expenses was not much since I needed a job,” another victim who identified herself as Janie said.
Uganda went into the first lockdown in March last year in a bid to control the spread of Covid-19. The second lockdown was announced in June this year and was lifted on July 30th.
Igoye has called upon all the victims to come out and record statements that would be of help during the prosecution of Nankya and Kyenzeni once they are arrested. CID team are now working with the Ministry of Internal Affairs to have the culprits arrested wherever they are.
“I want to advise the youth if you want to go abroad, crosscheck with the Ministry of Gender about license labour companies. Please go to the right places and get the rightful information. Do not leave in secret. Once they coach you to lie to immigration, just no it is a scam. Don’t be duped with free Visa” Igoye warns.
Grace Akullo, the CID director in her 2020 report indicates that 15.9 billion shillings was lost in cyber scams last year.
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