NAIROBI, Kenya, Feb 3 – A Nairobi Court has charged a man for withholding Sh140,000 that was wrongfully sent to his MPesa account.
The Magistrate’s Court charged Tony Munyoki for contravening section 35 of the computer misuse and cybercrime Act of 2018 by deliberately withholding the cash mistakenly sent to him by Muhumed Abdikadir.
Munyoki however denied all the charges before Senior Principal Magistrate Mary Njagi at the Makadara Law Courts.
On December 25, Abdikadir had missed a couple of digits and accidentally sent the cash to Munyoki.
He had intended to wire the funds as payment for work done through his Equity Bank account.
Attempts by Abdikadir to request Munyoki to revert the funds were futile as Munyoki decided to switch off his phone.
For two consecutive days he tried to contact Munyoki but he was unsuccessful which forced him to report the matter to Shauri Moyo Police Station.
DCI sleuths took over the matter and arrested Munyoki in his hardware in Kajiado County days before he was presented in court.
The magistrate set the case to be mentioned on March 28th before the hearing slated for June 22, 2023.
Munyoki was released on a bond Sh100,000 without an option of cash bail
On May 16, 2018, President Uhuru signed into law the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act.
Section 35 of the Act made it illegal for individuals to withdraw or withhold money accidentally sent to them electronically.
The Computer and Cyber Crimes Act, 2018 provides that Failing to reverse an M-Pesa transaction done by mistake will see Kenyans pay a Sh200,000 fine or be jailed for two years, or both.
Section 34 of the Act targets those who intentionally hide or hold electronic messages, electronic payments, credit and debit card details sent in error.
Section 36 states that a person who unlawfully destroys or aborts any electronic email or processes through which money or information is being conveyed commits an offence.
In 2021, Esther Karimi Muthoni was sentenced to serve a two-year prison term for failing to refund money accidentally sent to her.
Muthoni’s case has become a classic example of why keeping accidentally sent money could be costly.
She had received Sh271,200 in her agency account from Bakar Hussein Mohamed but willingly declined to refund the funds.
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