Three Egerton University students have been arrested for exam rigging a month before national exams.
Three students – Kevin Anunda Mogaka, Francis Manyara Ogata and Brawin Osano Ombongi – will be charged in a Milimani court tomorrow, while the fourth will be a state witness.
The three men face charges of conspiracy to defraud the public, dissemination of false information and possession of stolen identity.
The student was arrested following an investigation by Knec and the Department of Criminal Investigation (DCI).
They allegedly opened 15 accounts on WhatsApp and Telegram and asked people for money by promising to send them leaked exam papers.
They demanded between Sh5,000 and Sh35,000. The group has more than 2,500 members, according to the Nation.
According to investigators, the students collected more than Sh4 million deposited into two bank accounts frozen by the DCI.
One of the suspect’s relatives told detectives that Mogaka had hit the jackpot after a successful bet and that he would send money to build a house for himself at his home in Nyamusi, Nyamira County.
When the investigators visited the house in Nyamusi, they confirmed that the fourth grader was actually building a “simple house” in the village.
Various ATM cards, ID cards and other SIM cards belonging to them were also found.
However, Kenya National Examinations Council (Knec) CEO David Njengere has allayed fears of exam leaks, saying all exam documents are in custody. He warned the disciples not to be deceived.
“Students can be easily misled in times of stress. The public must know that no one can access the exam documents and anyone who wants to do it is available. Every candidate can access the papers at the same time on the exam day,” said Dr Njeng.
KNEC will conduct three exams between November and December.
The first cohort of the Competency Based Curriculum (KBK) will take the Kenya Primary School Education Assessment (KPSEA) in January next year before moving on to Junior High School (JSS).
The training is scheduled for Friday, November 25, 2022, and the assessment will take place between November 28 and November 30, 2022.
The assessment will run concurrently with the Kenya Certificate of Basic Education (KCPE) examination for Standard 8 candidates. This is the last KCPE examination, the last group of 8-4-4 to complete basic education next year.
The Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) Examination will begin on Friday, December 2, 2022 and continue until December 23, 2022.
The total number of candidates will increase significantly from the 2021 edition held in March. 1,214,031 candidates sat for KCPE and 826,807 sat for KCSE.