PHOTO: The selfie Joseph Njoki took with an Eldoret university student he alledgedly raped.
A university student on Wednesday said she was a victim of a suspected fraudster who has been using a faked online identity with Nairobi Senator Mike Sonko’s name on it.
The woman, aged 22, said she was raped repeatedly by Joseph Gitau Njoki after he lied to her that he would facilitate a meeting between her and Sonko to help pay her university fees.
Gitau, who she said she met through a fake Facebook account, convinced her that Sonko would sponsor her education to the tune of Sh150,000.
It took Gitau one week to nab his prey after she shared her contacts through the fake foundation's page.
The woman narrated how Gitau called and asked her to travel to Nairobi for him to facilitate the meeting with the senator promising that the fare would be refunded on arrival.
The victim then traveled to Nairobi for the first time in mid-June, where Gitau had promised to pick her up from the North Rift matatu stage.
“He came after 30 minutes to pick me up and he told me that the senator was relaxing in a room he had booked. We arrived in the room he had already booked, next to some road leading to Westlands. We chatted for some minutes before he excused himself, saying he wanted to see the senator,” narrated the human resource student.
Gitau came back after a short while and said Sonko was still resting after a hard day’s work. That evening, the two ordered dinner, with Gitau still promising the woman that they would get an opportunity to address her concerns.
After dinner, Gitau directed the woman to follow him to the room where the Nairobi senator was allegedly waiting. Once in the room, Gitau closed the door before hurling a barrage of insults at her.
“He told me that I would curse the day I was born and I started getting worried because we were only the two of us in the room and Sonko was nowhere. I did not want to risk my life,” she said. Gitau then forced her to have sex with him until morning.
“The following day he threw Sh2,000 at me, hurling insults. He left and I had to go back home dejected and frustrated,” she said adding that Gitau has repeatedly called her, although she ignored the calls.
She said that even though she did not report the matter to the police, she was happy to hear the news that Gitau had been arrested and she is looking forward to taking the witness stand against him.
Gitau appeared before a Nairobi court on Wednesday where he denied charges of creating a Facebook page under the name The Mike Sonko Foundation and using it to solicit funds from the public.
Appearing before Chief Magistrate Helena Nderitu the suspect was charged with impersonation and obtaining money from unwary people. The charge sheet reads that he falsely represented himself on the Facebook page on April 29 with intent to defraud members of the public.
Gitau is also charged with improper use of a licensed telecommunications system. He is accused that he knowingly posted a false message on the Facebook page with the intention of conning Kenyans.
The message read: “This morning I have issued cheques worth Sh6.2 million sent to me by Kenyans. Keep on sending money through my M-Pesa line 0713004255. To all my fans, comment wisely to avoid being banned on this page.”
The prosecution said Gitau posted the message online for purposes of causing needless anxiety among Facebook users. Gitau is also charged with obtaining Sh200,000 from Gideon Maina, at Mombasa, by falsely pretending to be in a position to assist him to buy a new Nissan matatu.
The court denied him bail after it emerged that the police were seeking him for having jumped bail on a different matter.
His trial will begin on August 26.
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