Suspended Sentence for Nairobi Hawker Who Fabricated Fake Carjacking Story

A Nairobi court has given a 58-year-old man a one-year suspended sentence after he admitted lying to police about being carjacked at gunpoint.

Chief Magistrate Dolphina Alego delivered the ruling at Milimani Law Courts, sentencing Kishan Sachania after considering his age and physical condition. The court imposed the suspended term despite a probation report that recommended a custodial sentence due to his lack of a fixed residence and limited family support in Kenya.

Sachania’s close relatives, including a daughter and two sisters, live in the United Kingdom. The probation report noted that he had no immediate family locally to provide support.

The case began in December when Sachania reported to Parklands Police Station, claiming he had been violently robbed of his vehicle. Police recorded the complaint and issued alerts across the country. Investigations later revealed that the report was false.

Police established that Sachania had been found sleeping near a hotel’s refuse area and was chased away by security guards. He later admitted that he fabricated the carjacking story to hide the embarrassment of his situation.

During mitigation, defence lawyer Oliver Tangara, who represented Sachania without charge, asked the court to consider a non-custodial sentence. He told the court that the hotel had agreed to offer Sachania employment, accommodation, and meals during the suspension period.

Tangara argued that imprisonment would be excessive given his client’s age and vulnerable circumstances, and said the hotel’s support provided a stable alternative to incarceration. In accepting the plea, the magistrate warned Sachania that the suspended sentence would be enforced if he committed another offence. 

She said that providing false information to police was a serious offence that could disrupt law enforcement work. Sachania apologised to the court and said his actions were driven by shame and financial hardship. He told the court that he survived by selling small electronic items in Westlands and Parklands. 

He also asked that his family abroad not be informed of the case. After the ruling, Sachania thanked the court and the hotel for their assistance. He said he would comply with the law and avoid further wrongdoing.