Four KCSE candidates have been charged in a Mombasa court for being in possession of examination materials.
The prosecution alleges they were found with the English Paper 2 materials at the Chandaria Hall.
They were also charged for being in possession of a mobile phone inside an examination room, contravening the regulations governing national examinations.
The students all denied the charges before Senior Principal Magistrate Richard Odenyo and were released on bond of Sh50,000 or an alternative cash bail of Sh30,000 each until December 6 when their case will be heard.
Mombasa County Director of Education Abdikadir Kike stated that examination officials are on higher alert to deal with cases of cheating.
“We are all united in the opinion that candidates should not cheat during their examinations. We want students to produce honest results which they have not been helped by anyone to achieve. It is immoral to cheat in the examinations,” he said.
He further called on the public to be cautious of people selling fake examination papers.
“The KNEC Act stated that cheating is a very serious offence. This includes three years imprisonment for those who have been found guilty. So we are encouraging every candidate not to be drawn into this vice,” he said.
The lawyer representing two of the candidates Jared Magolo told the court the two had travelled from Garrisa to Mombasa to sit for the examinations.
He applied for bond to allow the students to continue with the remaining exams.
“They are only victims of circumstances. They are innocent and the court should consider a reasonable bond to so that they don’t miss the exams,” he told the court.
The Kenya National Examination Council (KNEC) said it was on high alert in regions likely to engage in examination cheating.
They identified Kisumu, Garissa, Nairobi, Eldoret, Nakuru, Mombasa and Mandera as the potential cheating areas.
The Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examinations kicked off on Tuesday with more than 450,000 candidates sitting the national exams.
