A ‘fake’ lawyer who reportedly won all 26 of his cases despite having no legal training has been arrested in Kenya.

The man practising under the name Brian Mwenda has been accused of being a ‘masquerader’ who had stolen the identity of a real lawyer called Brian Mwenda Ntwiga, the BBC reports.

The ‘fake lawyer’ won all 26 of his cases in various Kenyan courts – despite not having any legal training, according to local media.

But he has now been arrested by the Rapid Action Team of the Nairobi Branch of the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) after his case caused public outrage and the branch received many complaints.

He allegedly accessed the society’s portal and tampered with the account details of a man sharing the same name, before uploading his own picture and claiming to be trained in law.

The man practising under the name Brian Mwenda (pictured here) has been accused of being a ‘masquerader’ who had stolen the identity of a real lawyer called Brian Mwenda Ntwiga

 

 The ‘fake lawyer’ (pictured here) won all 26 of his cases in various Kenyan courts – despite not having any legal training, according to local media

The ‘real’ Brian Mwenda Ntwiga contacted the LSK after he was unable to access his account and realised that some details had been changed.

‘On the 5th Day of August 2022, Brian Mwenda Ntwiga was admitted to the Bar and his correct email address was captured and an Account opened for him in the Advocates portal,’ the LSK said in a statement.

‘We have reached out to Advocate Brian Mwenda Ntwiga who confirmed that he had not applied for a practicing certificate since his admission, reason being that he had been working at the Office of the Attorney General and did not require a Practicing Certificate.

‘It was only until sometimes in September 2023 when he attempted to login in to the system and activate his profile with the intention of applying for his Practising Certificate that he realized he could not access his LSK Portal.’

The LSK’s Nairobi Branch also wrote on X, formerly Twitter: ‘The Branch wishes to notify all members of the society and of the public that BRIAN MWENDA NJAGI is not an Advocate of the High Court of Kenya, from the Society’s records, neither is he a member of the Branch.’

While the case caused outrage, especially among legal officials, others deemed the ‘fake lawyer’ impressive.

Kenya’s Central Organisation of Trade Unions (COTU) told the BBC that he was a ‘brilliant young mind’ who made it ‘without traditional qualifications’.

Another of the man’s supporters is Mike Sonko, Nairobi’s controversial former governor, posted a video with the man on X.

The man next to Mr Sonko said: ‘I would like to convey my gratitude to the people that are supporting me and praying for me… in the fullness of time I will be able to clear this misunderstanding.

‘I will be also be able to provide my innocence and provide the actual context.’

Mr Sonko, who has faced allegations of drug trafficking and money laundering during his political career, wrote in the tweet that the supposed Mr Mwenda would go to a police station to record a statement.

Renson Mulele Ingonga, Kenya’s director of public prosecutions, has said Mr Mwenda might face prosecution after he instructed the Inspector General of the National Police Service to carry out an investigation.

He added in a statement on Saturday that there had been ‘increased cases of unqualified persons… pretending to be Advocates of the High Court of Kenya’.