Fugitive Goldenscape CEO Peter Wangai Arrested by DCI Detectives

Goldenscape Group Limited founder and CEO Peter Wangai Muriithi has been arrested three weeks after he went into hiding.

Wangai was nabbed by detectives from the Serious Crimes Unit of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) on Thursday over fraud accusations.

He is accused of luring Kenyans to invest in greenhouses that were to be set up in Ol Kalou, Nyahururu and other places in the country with a promise of earning huge profits.

The investment deal, however, turned out to be a fraudulent scheme where many investors lost their hard-earned cash, the DCI said in a statement.

Wangai is set to face charges of obtaining money by false pretenses, conspiracy to defraud, false representation, and issuing bad cheques.

On March 12th, DCI detectives raided Goldenscape’s offices in Karen, Nairobi, where five staff were arrested for questioning over the matter. The officers also seized several documents and 10 desktop computers believed to contain information relevant to the investigation.

Wangai went into hiding on March 2nd after learning that police were seeking to arrest him following numerous complaints filed against him. He shut down his offices in Nairobi CBD and Lower Kabete before disappearing.

Nearly 100 people accusing Wangai of defrauding them have recorded statements with the DCI’s financial crimes investigation unit. 

In one of its investment packages, Goldenscape was promising investors annual returns of Sh550,000 for an investment of Sh320,000. The company has failed to pay its investors since November 2019 despite numerous assurances.