Machakos: 2 Suspects Caught On CCTV Stealing From Patients Arrested

• Two suspects were arrested in a police investigation into a phone theft syndicate at Machakos Level 5 Hospital
• Investigations started after a female patient reported her phone stolen, prompting hospital security to review the hospital's CCTV footage
• The footage showed a man named Peter Mutavi stealing from a female patient in the facility's radiology department

Two suspects have been arrested for allegedly stealing from unsuspecting patients at Machakos Level 5 Hospital.

How were the Machakos suspects caught?

The two suspects were arrested after one of them, Peter Mutavi, was captured on CCTV footage stealing from a patient at the facility's radiology department.

According to a Citizen TV report, the patient raised the alarm after her phone went missing, prompting security personnel to review CCTV footage, which revealed Mutavi as the suspect.

"I figured that my phone was stolen by a man I met at the X-ray area. That is when investigations began, they showed me the man. We also saw another woman on the CCTV footage being stolen from," the victim said.

The suspect told police about another individual named Francis Mumo, whom he claimed was his accomplice in the hospital thefts.

After further investigations, the police found Mumo with a mobile phone suspected of being stolen from a patient.

The Chief Officer of Health in Machakos, Simon Mwako, said that all payments at the hospital are processed through phones, making it easier for criminals to target patients.

The two suspects are set to appear in court on Thursday.

Sick man dies after discharged patient cons him

In a separate case, police launched an investigation into an alleged conman exploiting patients at Kiambu County Referral Hospital.

Mary Wambui had taken her ailing husband, Julius, to the facility but was informed they needed to do more tests.

According to Felister Wanjohi, Wambui's sister, Julius received KSh 11,000 on his phone but was defrauded by a man in the hospital.

Wambui lamented that the case had been going on for too long, but nothing was coming out of it, and her husband died waiting to undergo the tests.

Proofreading by Mercy Nyambura Guthua, journalist and copy editor at TUKO.co.ke