Eldoret Police Station in Uasin Gishu County on April 01, 2024.
It was typical merrymaking at a nightclub in Eldoret last Friday as revellers enjoyed drinks and danced to the loud music.
For one merrymaker- a senior military officer, the party would end in tears the following day.
He reportedly lost Sh1.5 million to his female companion, according to a police report.
“The officer left Nairobi enroute home, loaded with cash but decided to make a stopover and unwind in the newest city of Eldoret. For the period he was here, a woman dressed in skintight clothes kept close guard helping him with drinks,” said a bouncer at the club, who sought to remain anonymous.
In control
He described the woman as a ‘stranger’ in the new city but seemingly on top of things-ordering food and drinks and making payments through M-Pesa service using the military officer’s cellphone.
The two left the club at 3am. The man found himself alone in a guest house they had booked. The woman had vanished after reportedly stealing cash and withdrawing money from his mobile phone as well as online banking and ATM transactions.
According to an unofficial report made at an Eldoret police station, the man claimed to have lost more than Sh1.5 million.
Read: Mchele gang: Two charged for stealing Sh600, 000 from Mombasa man
Ironically, the victim is reported to have been reluctant to allow police to launch investigations into the incident claiming that it will have negative consequences on his family.
“I have lost more than Sh1.5m to a woman I was having fun with. Despite the loss I don’t want to make a formal report because this matter is likely to injure my family. I hope to handle the matter personally as an officer. Soon I will arrest the suspect,” the military man told a police officer at the Eldoret Central Station.
This incident confirms the upsurge of the phenomenon commonly known as "mchele" (rice) since the drugs used by the thieves resemble grains of rice.
The drug is also known as "Pishori", which is a tasty variety of rice.
In November 2023, Uasin Gishu County police commander Benjamin Mwanthi ordered for investigation into a case where a night club in Eldoret town was associated with cases of stupefying and drugging.
The directive by Mr Mwanthi was a result of an incident where a woman allegedly lost Sh38,000 at the club through drugging. She reported the incident at Eldoret Police Station.
Rising cases
For the last four months, more than five cases of stupefying have been reported in Eldoret courts.
In 2022 two women were charged in an Eldoret court with drugging and robbing a senior manager from a telecommunication company cash and property all worth Sh300,000.
The two stole from the man in his house at Kapsoya Estate at the outskirts of Eldoret town.
In 2023 another woman was charged with drugging and stealing from a man at an Eldoret club.
These cases are also common in other urban centers in the country.
In January 2022, the DCI reported how a man in Mombasa lost Sh596,000 from his bank account after he was drugged by a woman he met at a popular nightclub.
In July 2021, a man was charged with drugging and stealing Sh126,000 from a woman at a hotel in Kitengela, Kajiado County.
Detectives have revealed that rogue pharmacists are supplying the stupefying drugs.
The drugs used by Pishori Ladies are mostly medical sedatives. They include Rohypnol, Valium, ketamine among others.
Excessive dosage of the stupefying drugs results in slurred speech, inability to concentrate, poor coordination, dizziness, nausea and memory loss.
