Labour Cabinet Secretary Dr. Alfred Mutua has exposed a fraudulent recruitment scheme that scammed three Kenyan women into believing they had secured legitimate jobs in Oman.
In a statement on January 30, 2026, the CS confirmed the use of forged Ministry stamps, fake labour clearances, and invalid work visas that do not exist in Oman’s official records.
“The report below details an investigation into the recruitment of Jeneffer, Matilda, and Caroline, scheduled for travel to Oman. The case involves the use of falsified government documents, an unlicensed recruitment agency, and suspicious direct-hire claims,” read part of the warning.
The investigation report names an unlicensed ticketing contact linked to Elijah’s Ticketing Tours and a phantom Ministry officer named Raphael as key players in the deception.
Fake Recruitment Details
As Mutua revealed, the contact individual, Elijah, admitted he does not have a recruitment license and said his main role is limited to ticketing and reservations for direct hires only.
“The recruitment was facilitated through an informal network rather than a registered agency,” CS Mutua said.
The three Kenyan women are said to have been recruited by a foreign recruiter, Mr. Mohamed, based in Oman, but the job seekers did not use a registered Kenyan recruitment agency and were therefore exposed to being scammed.
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The primary contact cited Mr. Raphael at the Ministry of Labour as the officer responsible for labour clearance and contract attestation, but a verification with the Ministry’s Attestation Department confirmed that no officer by the name exists in that unit.
Also, to authenticate the documents, a search was conducted on the Oman e-Visa Portal, which returned no records for the said work visas. The stamps on the recruitment documents were found to be fake and not issued by the Ministry of Labour.
The Staunch Warning and Labor Verifications
Mutua warned that skipping registered agencies exposes Kenyans to serious risks and urged immediate verification through official channels before any payments or travel.
“Before engaging anyone on Kazi Majuu, please undertake basic research and due diligence. To verify whether a recruitment agency is registered, visit http://neaims.go.ke and check the list of private recruitment agencies, or verify that the agency is legitimate. Alternatively, contact the National Employment Authority through the toll-free numbers 0800 222 223 or 020 861 0000, or send an email to [email protected],” read part of the CS’s warning
Previous Similar Cases
Kenya has seen a sharp rise in complaints about fraudulent overseas recruitment, especially to Gulf countries such as Oman, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, and Kuwait.
In 2025, Kenya’s Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs and Labour Ministry repeatedly issued warnings against fake jobs and visa offers abroad, where victims were lured with promises but arrived with invalid documents or no jobs, leading to exploitation.
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Cases of Kenyans stranded in Qatar with expired visas after paying agents for non-existent jobs, with similar patterns appearing for Oman-bound recruits using fake employer letters or visas.
Between 2025 and 2026, the Ministry of Labour confirmed that it had investigated hundreds of cases, shut down over 400 illegal agencies, and probed over 390 fraud complaints related to labour mobility programs. Many involve unregistered entities not listed with the National Employment Authority (NEA) or Business Registration Service.
The cases came with reports of deception about job conditions, passport confiscation, long working hours, abuse, and others, as bad as hundreds of Kenyan women reportedly dying suspiciously in recent years.
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