On Wednesday morning, Juma opened his shop earlier than usual. There was no first customer yet, but Halima had arrived with two laptops, a small recorder, and a sheet showing account numbers cut in half. The support message on his cousin’s phone kept returning to Juma: deposit fifteen percent before midnight to activate recovery.
“We’ll call from two accounts,” Halima said. “We won’t tell them we know each other. We’ll ask one question in different words, then write down exactly what they say.”
Juma opened his account on the old phone. The balance showed the locked amount, and beneath it was a Withdrawal button that returned him to the same top-up page. “If I open my account, they’ll say I mixed up the password.”
“Then we request a written ticket before clicking anything.”
Halima made the first call. Juma placed the recorder near the speaker. A short tune played, then a man introduced himself as a support specialist.
“The account has been placed on a compliance hold,” he said.
“Can I remove the hold without putting in more money?” Halima asked.
“For now, the system requires ownership verification.”
“What kind of verification?”
“A deposit of fifteen percent of the balance. It will be returned with the withdrawal.”
Halima did not argue. “Please send that requirement by email.”
“Email is not used for internal recovery.”
“Then give me a ticket number.”
The man recited a long number. Halima repeated the digits one by one and asked him to confirm them. She ended the call after he promised the ticket would be opened.
Juma called from his account. He asked whether the delayed withdrawal was connected to his referral name. A woman’s voice said there was no referral problem; his account needed “liquidity confirmation.”
“How much?” Juma asked.
“Fifteen percent.”
“And if I refuse?”
“The recovery queue may move backward. We cannot promise a time.”
Juma asked for the company behind the support service. The woman said KukuaPlus, but the footer on the message sent to his cousin read K-Plus Resolution Services. Juma wrote the name on the sheet.
Halima opened her phone. “They called my account a compliance hold. They called yours liquidity confirmation.”
“But the amount is the same.”
“And the urgency?”
Juma read the message. “Before midnight.”
Halima clicked the support link and requested written terms. The system returned her to the login page, then opened a warning that failure to deposit could remove withdrawal priority. There was no officer’s name or company address. Halima took a screenshot and wrote down the time and URL.
A customer entered to buy a charger, so Juma closed the laptop and served him. When the customer left, Juma’s phone vibrated. A new notification said the account had been restricted for “suspicious coordinated enquiries.” Juma opened the withdrawal page; the support button no longer worked.
“They restricted you for asking questions?” Halima asked.
“Or because they saw two accounts on one network.”
“That is still an inference.”
Juma looked at her. “How do I write what I see without calling it what they did?”
“You write: after two calls from different accounts, Juma’s account showed a restriction notice. We do not know whether the calls caused the notice. We preserve the timestamps.”
Juma took a new sheet. He divided it into three columns: FACT, UNKNOWN, NEXT REQUEST. Under fact he wrote that both scripts requested fifteen percent. Under unknown he wrote whether the support agents belonged to one system or different vendors. Under next request he wrote signed terms, the legal entity, and the withdrawal policy.
Halima called the first agent again. “I need the ticket number and the name of the entity managing recovery.”
“You were given that information.”
“You gave me KukuaPlus on the phone. My message says K-Plus Resolution Services.”
“It’s our external recovery department.”
“Is it the same company?”
The agent fell silent.
Halima said, “Please answer in writing.”
“If you keep making multiple calls, the accounts may be closed permanently.”
“We want to prevent an unverified deposit.”
The voice became sharp. “Without a deposit, you cannot verify ownership.”
Halima ended the call and placed the recorder in the evidence folder. Juma felt part of his hope break. He had entered the platform believing every problem had a final button. Now every button returned him to a request for new money, and every question seemed to be translated as a threat.
Musa passed the shop carrying his loan letter. “You’re still making these calls?” he asked.
“We’re verifying the script,” Juma said.
“And if they say a deposit is the only way?”
“We have no proof of that. We have proof that they are asking for it.”
Musa slapped the paper. “This is borrowed money.”
Juma wanted to say that he had lost money too, but stopped himself. “That is why we don’t put in more because of an urgent message.”
Halima showed him the two columns. “Two accounts. Two people. Slightly different words, the same condition. And a footer with a different company name.”
Musa looked down. “Do you think it’s a scam?”
Juma did not use the word. “We think there is a pattern that must be verified before any further action.”
Musa left with the loan letter folded into his pocket. Juma opened his email and sent support a request for information, listing the ticket number, call times, the percentage quoted, and every entity name that had appeared. He did not threaten them, mention the police, or demand a refund. He asked only for the terms and the authority behind recovery.
Before they closed the shop, Halima received an automatic reply. Their ticket had been opened, but beneath the message was the same footer: K-Plus Resolution Services.
Halima asked Juma to send a copy to the evidence-only group without adding an opinion. “Don’t write that we’ve discovered a secret company,” she said. “Write only that the footer in the support reply does not match the platform name used at the beginning.”
Juma did so. Two people replied that they had seen the name in their messages, but one said it had different letters. Halima did not delete the replies. She asked them to send complete screenshots showing the date, sender, and URL.
Musa sent a private message: If they are asking for a deposit, maybe we need to pay so we don’t lose everything. Juma read it without anger. He sent him the fact, unknown, and next-request sheet. “This is what I can prove today,” he wrote. “I will not advise you to put more money into a request that shows no terms.”
Musa did not reply immediately. After a while he sent: Fine. Don’t tell me we’ve won; just tell me the next step.
Juma printed it. Beneath the company name was one line: “Ownership can only be confirmed through additional deposit.”
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