KAMPALA – Micheal Karugire, the proprietor of Qadar Recruitment Agency fled to Kenya after conning more than Ugx800m from job seekers – police has confirmed.
Patrick Onyango, the Kampala Metropolitan Police Spokesperson said all leads show that Karugire fled to Kenya.
He noted that the Kampala criminal investigations team was in advanced stages of notifying Interpol requesting their Kenyan counterparts to apprehend and extradite Karugire to Uganda for prosecution.
Economic and cybercrime detectives launched a hunt for Karugire a fortnight ago after seven major police stations in Kampala received dozens of complaints – accusing him of fleecing millions of money in job scams.
The cases were reported at Nateete, CPS, Old Kampala, and Katwe policing divisions.
Karugire advertised jobs on Facebook promising prospective employees more than Ugx5m in Nexen Tire Company in South Korea. Other jobs which attracted more than 300 applicants in a space of three months were in Canada, Qatar, and Turkey.
Sisters Priscilla Akugizibwe and Marion Namara were some of the victims of Qadar recruitment agencies. Unlike Hassan Ssempijja and others who learned about Qadar via Facebook posts, Akugizibwe and Namara were approached by the company agents.
“They told us we were going to work in South Korea. We asked them our questions and they assured us. We paid Ugx10m on September 26, 2022.
“They told us we would travel within 18 days. But since that time we have not travelled. They keep telling us that our Visas are out but we don’t travel,” narrated Namara.
Onyango said much as Karugire was suspected to have fled the country, his agents were still active in the field duping other unsuspecting job seekers – warning the public against dealing with Qadar Recruitment Agency because it had since closed its offices in Kabuusu near Monalisa Pub.
“We have registered several complaints against that company called Qadar Recruitment Agency. They have defrauded over Ugx800m from very many people within a period of three months.
“We already have information that there are still some people who they call and tell to meet either in the bank or restaurant. They have run away from the offices. Do not deal with them,” advised Onyango.
Namara said when Sharon Ndagire and one Amina from the company convinced them about jobs at Nexen Tire Company in South Korea; they also made searches and noticed that the employment opportunities were indeed available.
Akugizibwe and Namara said they had used all their savings –in addition to borrowing from relatives and friends to raise Ugx5m each so that they could secure jobs in South Korea. The money, according to the duo, was for visa processing and securing their jobs in South Korea. But Karugire and his agents have since been tossing them up and down.
