How Kenyans got tangled in $130m US ghost student scam

A Kenyan national, Francis Mogambi, has been indicted in a US investigation into an alleged $130m scheme that used stolen identities to enrol “ghost students” in American colleges and claim federal financial aid, the BBC reports.

Mogambi arrived in the US in 2024 through the Diversity Visa lottery. On 19 October, a Nebraska grand jury charged him with theft of government money and aggravated identity theft.

Prosecutors allege he worked with associates in Kenya to enrol fictitious students, kept 30 per cent of the aid and sent the rest to Kenya. He faces at least 10 years in prison if convicted.

The probe, called Operation Ghostbusters, has so far produced five indictments involving Kenyans, and 40 more investigations remain open.

“In a flash, the money vanishes, often overseas in places like Kenya,” said Assistant Attorney General Colin McDonald.

Working with Kenyan investigators, US authorities have also seized more than $750,000 from a Kenyan national’s cryptocurrency account.