Kenyan Man Sues Recruitment Agency After Being Trafficked to Myanmar in Job Scam

 

By Lucky Sidney Mulerah

A Kenyan man has taken legal action against a Nairobi-based overseas recruitment agency after allegedly being trafficked to Myanmar under false pretences in what is now emerging as a human trafficking and cybercrime scandal.

Duncan Okindo, a victim of the trafficking, has filed a case at the High Court against Gratify Solutions International, alongside its officials Virginia Wacheke Muriithi, Boniface Owino, and Ann Njeri Kihara, among others, accusing them of facilitating his trafficking and exposing him to forced labour and criminal exploitation.

In response to the case, the High Court has temporarily barred the agency from recruiting and sending Kenyans abroad for work until the matter is heard and determined.

According to court documents, Okindo says he was promised a customer service job in Bangkok, Thailand, only to be trafficked by boat into Myanmar, where he was forced to work in a heavily guarded scam compound. There, he claims he was coerced into performing sophisticated cyber fraud operations under constant surveillance.

“I didn’t know it was a scam city at first because walikua wanaficha (they were hiding it),” Okindo stated, describing the harrowing ordeal he faced while trapped in what he called a “cybercrime prison.”

Okindo's case is part of a growing wave of testimonies from Kenyan youths who have returned from Southeast Asia after falling victim to similar schemes. Most left the country in search of better lives, only to come back traumatized, penniless, and emotionally scarred.

The petition accuses Gratify Solutions International of unlawfully recruiting unsuspecting Kenyan job seekers by advertising fake employment opportunities in Bangkok. Victims were allegedly issued tourist visas, flown to Thailand, and later smuggled by boat into Myanmar, where they were handed over to criminal syndicates involved in global online fraud.

Okindo is demanding justice not only for himself but also for others who fell into the same trap. He is calling for criminal accountability and urging the government to crack down on rogue recruitment agencies that exploit desperate job seekers.

“This is not just a personal tragedy,” said Okindo. “It is a national concern. Many young Kenyans are being misled, trafficked, and used for illegal activities abroad.”

The case has triggered renewed scrutiny over the operations of foreign job placement firms in Kenya, with human rights groups and legal advocates now calling for tighter regulation of the labour export industry. Authorities are also being urged to investigate the involvement of Kenyan agents in global trafficking networks.

With investigations ongoing and more victims expected to come forward, Okindo’s legal challenge could mark a turning point in Kenya’s efforts to combat human trafficking disguised as overseas employment.