A Day With The Police

Since buying a used Landcruiser last August, I have really struggled to sell my old Mitsubishi Pajero. Several people showed interest last year, but none were able to come up with the money needed. In December someone was ready to buy it but was advised by his mechanic that the turbo should be replaced. We offered to reduce the price so that he could purchase it and then fix it himself, but he refused. So we took it to a mechanic to fix the turbo. The mechanic really liked the vehicle and decided he wanted to buy it. After fixing the turbo, he decided to do some more work on the engine which I never authorized. When I travelled to Nairobi around Christmas I was planning on collecting the vehicle and bringing it back to Mbita where someone was ready to pay cash for it, but I was surprised to find the entire engine sitting in the backseat. We had some heated words with the mechanic and he said not to worry because he would buy it. He kept promising payment, but never delivered it. Finally in February he sent me a post-dated check for the full amount, along with a sales agreement. He asked me to send him the transfer forms signed so that he could change the ownership and then the bank would agree to give him a loan for the full amount. After seeking professional opinions I agreed and sent the forms, but took the vehicle away from him until the transfer was complete and money in my account.

He changed the ownership into his name, but, unfortunately, the check bounced. Luckily I never paid him for any of the work he did on the vehicle. He failed to get the loan and continued to make promises weekly that he never fulfilled. Eventually he was forced to close down his garage (I can’t imagine why) and is trying to open another one in another location. It forced me to make a couple of unexpected journeys to Nairobi to sort out the situation (or at least try). I was getting lots of promises but no money and I couldn’t even get him to sign the transfer forms back over to me. Throughout the process we have kept the vehicle somewhere so he didn’t have access to it. At the beginning of May (3 months after the check bounced) he actually deposited 10% of the sale price in my account but it was too little too late. Finally, after months of struggling I took the advice of a lawyer and I travelled to Nairobi to have him arrested for check fraud and breach of contract.

It was quite an interesting day. I went to the Kilimani police station in Nairobi. I was nervous after hearing so many stories of corruption among the police force and not really understanding how all of these things work in Kenya. I was sent from one office to another until I finally landed at the office of the Divisional Criminal Investigations Officer (DCIO). I was greeted there by a warm smile and a big hug. The DCIO there was a Christian who used to serve in Mbita. He didn’t know my name but recognized me as the one who brought bibles and food to the internally displaced people that were camping at the police station in Mbita after being chased from their homes during the post-election violence. No one else knew what I had done except for this policeman, and maybe one or two others, yet God set it up and now he was the one I was going to for help. What an amazing God we serve! The DCIO assigned another one of his officers to handle our case.

I had to wait a couple of hours as the officer went to another station to get a vehicle and fill it with fuel. Then we set off with six of us in a little Toyota Corolla to find the man. We found his old mechanic shop that was closed. I offered a few suggestions on how to get the man, but they didn’t seem to think I knew anything that could help them. After struggling for about 1.5 hours, they finally went with my idea. They called him and pretended to need some help with their car and the mechanic agreed to meet them somewhere. I can’t go into every detail, but let’s just say the policeman wasn’t very friendly to the man once they found him (and actually he wasn’t very friendly to me either). We rode back to the police station with seven of us now stuffed in a small vehicle designed to hold five (Is that illegal?). The mechanic kept on talking and looking at me asking “Why?” It wasn’t a very fun experience for either of us. To make a long story short, by the next day I had the ownership book and transfer papers signed by him and am now able to put the vehicle back in my name and put it on the market again. The mechanic continues to make promises and still wants to purchase the vehicle, but at least now I have some control over it since I am able to sell it to someone else if he doesn’t come through soon.

God really saw me through that difficult time. If it wasn’t for the connection with an “old friend” in the police station I don’t think I would have received much help. I was able to get their assistance without giving them even a penny for a bribe.

Please pray that I would be able to sell the vehicle soon and without many more hassles.