Education Ministry Responds to KCSE Impersonation Arrests in Embu and Nakuru

Authorities have reported two arrests for alleged impersonation of Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) candidates, one in Embu County and another in Nakuru County, as they tighten security around the 2026 examinations.

In Embu, a 31-year-old man was taken into custody at Urban Integrated Senior School after police said he had been sitting the examinations on behalf of a registered candidate since Monday, November 2.

The suspect was escorted to Embu Police Station where his motorcycle was seized, and Embu County Director of Education Samuel Mutemi, together with officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), began an inquiry to determine how the impersonation was carried out and whether other persons were involved; Urban Integrated Senior School is hosting 141 private candidates for this year’s KCSE.

In Nakuru, a 31-year-old diploma holder was arrested during a candidate verification exercise at Rohi Boys High School on Wednesday morning and had reportedly sat the first four examination papers before being discovered while taking the fifth.

Appearing before a Nakuru court on Thursday, the man entered a plea of not guilty to an allegation of impersonating a KCSE candidate contrary to Section 31(a) of the Kenya National Examinations Council Act and was released on a surety bond of KSh100,000, with a pre-trial conference scheduled for November 19, 2026.

Education Cabinet Secretary Julius Ogamba said “big brother is watching” and warned that anyone implicated in examination malpractice would be swiftly apprehended by a dedicated DCI team, while the Kenya National Examinations Council (KNEC) has prohibited candidates from wearing wristwatches and using mobile phones during the exams.

Examination impersonation is a criminal offence under KNEC regulations and can attract penalties that include fines and imprisonment, a reminder of the heightened vigilance surrounding the national examinations.