Police in Nambale Subcounty, Busia, have launched a manhunt for a Ugandan traditional herbalist who is accused of defrauding over 10 Kenyans of Ksh1.7 million and threatening them with death using what he referred to as a ritual snake.
The victims, who had reported the case at various police stations, are now demanding that the suspect be rearrested immediately. He had been released on a Ksh15,000 cash bail last week.
Preliminary investigations reveal that the suspect lured his victims using fake social media profiles on which he uploaded photos and videos of Dr. Paul Okello, a well-known herbalist in Kaliwa village, to impersonate a real healer.
Dr. Okello, who addressed the media to clear his name, explained that he did not participate in the scam.
The Ugandan suspect who carried out the scam was arrested on July 8, 2025, at a private residence he had leased and converted into an office within Nambale town.
His arrest was a response to a police complaint filed by Dr. Okello, who had received alarming complaints from victims who said the man was impersonating him online. Okello said he accompanied some of the victims to the police station to file the complaint after finding out that the suspect had been using his name, image, and previous videos to lure unsuspecting clients.
Okello appealed to other individuals who were also deceived by the impersonator to report to the police, citing the need for justice.
The victims have, since then, narrated gruesome accounts of their experience. They testified that the suspect invited them to his rented apartment purporting to be a herbalist and later threatened to kill them and curse them if they did not pay enormous sums of money.
Police confirmed that they released the suspect on a cash bail of Ksh15,000 on Thursday, with stringent orders to report the following morning. He failed to report and has gone into hiding.
