James Chesimani Masengeli, the nephew of Deputy Inspector General of Police Gilbert Masengeli, appeared before Milimani Law Courts on Monday charged with running a multimillion-shilling police recruitment scam that defrauded desperate parents and job seekers of more than Ksh2.5 million through fake National Police Service calling letters.
The 34-year-old suspect, who was arrested last Thursday at a city hotel while allegedly collecting another Ksh150,000 instalment, faces 11 counts of obtaining money by false pretences and forgery of official government documents.
Prosecutors told Senior Principal Magistrate Ben Mark Ekhubi that between July and November 2025, Chesimani posed as a senior recruitment officer attached to the office of the Deputy Inspector General, promising guaranteed slots in the ongoing police constable intake for payments ranging from Ksh250,000 to Ksh400,000 per candidate.
Court documents seen by journalists reveal that at least nine victims from Kajiado, Narok and Nakuru counties transferred money to mobile numbers registered in Chesimani’s name after receiving professionally printed calling letters bearing the official NPS logo, forged signatures of recruitment board members and fake reporting dates at the General Service Unit training school in Embakasi. When the candidates arrived at the gate, they were turned away and informed no such names existed on the authentic list.
One father from Ngong broke down outside court after the hearing, telling reporters he sold three dairy cows to raise Ksh380,000 for his son’s “confirmed” placement. “He showed us WhatsApp chats with someone called ‘Uncle Gil’ saying everything was sorted. We trusted because the name Masengeli is big in police,” the man said.
During the plea, Chesimani maintained his innocence, claiming he was only a middleman collecting contributions for a church harambee and had no knowledge the letters were fake.
His lawyer successfully applied for Ksh500,000 cash bail or a Ksh1 million bond, arguing his client has deep roots in the community and poses no flight risk. The magistrate granted the request and ordered Chesimani to deposit his passport with the court.
The Directorate of Criminal Investigations promised a deeper probe, with an official saying, “We are tracing the source of the genuine letterheads and stamps used. Whoever printed those documents has access to restricted areas.” Detectives have already seized two laptops and three phones from Chesimani’s Karen home containing templates of calling letters dating back to the 2023 recruitment cycle.
The scandal comes at a sensitive time for the National Police Service, which is concluding recruitment of 5,000 new constables amid accusations of tribalism and bribery in several centres countrywide.
The police spokesperson has earlier reiterated that the only official way to join NPS is through the advertised portal and warned the public against conmen masquerading as senior officers.
James Chesimani Masengeli will return to court on January 20, 2026, for pre-trial. For now, the family name that once symbolised discipline and service now headlines a shameful chapter of alleged greed inside Kenya’s most powerful security institution.
