The UoN student, who defrauded the US government of over Ksh 400 million, purchased cars and two Cessna planes while selling illegal DSTV signals to his family.
On November 12, 2012, 23-year-old Jeff Sila walked into Wilson Airport holding a bag of cash.
Unlike his peers who were in class at UoN, Jeff skipped his lecture to come buy two Cessna planes, a decision that shocked the manager.
He listened carefully to Jeff’s explanation.”I want a 2-seater and a 4-seater plane.”
Who is this kid? The manager wondered, but since men couldn’t find answers, he assumed Jeff was one of those politician kids.”
Jeff was unaware that he hailed from a generation of scammers.
He inherited a trade from his maternal grandpa, Paul Nyumu, who first set foot in the USA in the late 90s, a time when moving to America was a dream for every African.
Grandpa Paul, like every Kenyan applying for a green card, successfully travelled from the dry lands of Ukambani to the city of Kansas.
However, upon arrival, he quickly realized that things on the ground were totally different from the success stories he had heard.
He was forced to work two or three jobs to support himself, a lifestyle he had never imagined when he bid Kwaheri Kenya at JKIA.
Either way, he continued to dream of better days, which thankfully came true when a friend introduced him to identity theft.
They engaged in a scam where they purchased the social security numbers and IDs of elderly residents in US nursing homes and then created fraudulent accounts to obtain tax refunds.
His job allowed him to quickly accumulate millions of dollars, even though he purchased the SSIDs from brokers.
He was enraged, much like Shiqoo Style fans, by their exorbitant prices. He made the decision to establish his own empire, fully aware that success required two essential elements.
The patient’s documents were accessible to a devoted tax preparer and their allies.
He didn’t have people on speed dial, but he flew back home in 2003, seeking loyalty.
He persuaded his daughter Monica Ndungi, a teacher in Machakos, to resign from her position and take up caregiving in Kansas.
He then offered to sponsor his two nieces, Lilian Nzongi and Loretta Wavinya, to further their studies in the US, with the aim of turning them into prize workers.
Loretta, a recent graduate in accounting, planned to apply for tax preparer positions once she arrived in the US.
However, before she could become an EA (enrolled agent), she needed to pass the IRS special enrollment exam, which Paul was sponsoring.
Lilian, on the other hand, was a KMTC graduate, so she’d work as a carer once certified in the US.
Together with Monica, they’d be in charge of recruiting carers who had assembled by February 2005.
Spread across homes in California and Kansas were Ervin Somba, 22; Edwin Nyumu Sila, 19; Vincent Ogega, 24; Moses Nduvai, 31; Aaron Mutavi, 26; Ken Njagi, 26; and Mary Njeri, 23.
The A team acted as carers with the sole purpose of gathering information about their elderly victims. Wavinya, who was now working as a certified tax preparer for a company in Kansas, received this information.
This quickly brought their American dream to reality, as millions flooded in with over 300 fraudulent claims, each ranging from $4,000 to $45K, while the state refunds ranged from $1,500 to $20,000.
Tbh, they had hit the jackpot.
Money was pouring in like rain from a Fat Joe music video, and everyone in the team was in high spirits.
From the smallest worker to the boss, everyone could afford at least a Ferrari, a beautiful apartment, plus a few million in the bank just in case they wanted to visit the strip club.
Or send money back home to build retirement homes or as pocket money to their kids, i.e., for those like Monica who have kids in school.
Her child was none other than Jeff Ndungi, who, as his classmates knew, had transformed from a quiet Alliance High alumni.
To a real crowd pleaser once the millions from Mom started coming as he was pursuing IT at UoN, because as his fellow freshmen struggled to book hostels, Jeff lived large in a furnished 1BR apartment in South B.
Mama fulfilled the dream of driving to school in a Benz or Escalade.
Meanwhile, Paul (Monica’s dad) made a sizable money transfer to Nairobi in December 2006, drawing the FBI’s attention and abruptly ending this honeymoon.
They wondered why this was happening and arrested Paul, who, under immense pressure, admitted to fraud.
He appeared in court, and fortunately, the court granted him bail, as the prosecution requested additional time to collect evidence to conclude their case.
This, however, was a big mistake on the gvt side, because as soon as Paul stepped out of jail, he headed straight to the airport and boarded the next plane to Kenya.
This was due to his knowledge of an impending storm, which did indeed materialize six months later.
In July 2007, following thorough investigations, the FBI raided the homes of his syndicate and apprehended all 18 members involved in a $13.1 million tax fraud conspiracy.
The biggest at the time.
This resulted in severe penalties, with each member of the team receiving a sentence of more than 10 years, except for the boss, Paul, who managed to escape while under bond in Machakos.
He made a move that protected him from the storm.
And that of the game, because as he lay low in Kenya, he linked up his IT-pursuing grandson, Jeffrey Sila, with a deal that would ultimately help him set up his first illegal business that was fast gaining traction in the African space.
The business of illegal streams. The arrangement involved Jeff electronically issuing a fraudulent check to the US Federal government, thereby enabling him to embezzle $7.7 million in 2012.
Money he had never dreamed of touching was used to buy the only thing he didn’t have: planes.
He bought Cessna 5Y-CCN and 5Y-CCI.
En later used the rest of the cash to buy equipment that would tap DSTV signals for him to sell them to West African countries.
In 2015, MultiChoice Kenya and Nigeria sought legal assistance due to unknowing manipulation of their finances.
