Kenyan innovator develops remote that Triggers “Huyu ni Mwizi” alarm on Stolen Phones

In a country where phone snatching has become a near-daily hazard, a local technology developer is fighting back with a simple but loud idea: make the stolen phone itself shout that the person carrying it is a thief.

Eliud Gilisho (also referred to in some reports as Eliud Ngilisho) has created a remote-controlled device that, when pressed after a phone is snatched, activates a persistent alarm on the device. The phone repeatedly announces “Huyu ni mwizi” — Swahili for “This is a thief” — at full volume, alerting people nearby and drawing attention to the theft.

Gilisho is now transitioning the remote into a wearable watch form for easier, more discreet activation. The system is paired with a companion app that tracks the phone’s location and can display on-screen warnings such as “This is a stolen phone,” “Police are following,” and “Drop it now,” while locking down key functions.

“The thief or the person who has snatched your phone can’t switch off your phone, and they cannot reduce the volume. The only time your phone will switch off is when it will die of battery,” Gilisho explained in a recent interview. He developed the technology after being stabbed in a robbery in which his own phone was taken, causing him to lose contacts, documents, and other critical data. “I vowed that I will never let phone theft happen as long as I am alive,” he said.

The innovation comes against a backdrop of stubbornly high phone theft rates. Reports indicate that three out of every ten Kenyans have lost a phone to theft, with Nairobi alone seeing roughly ten phones stolen every 20 minutes. Phone theft accounts for a significant share of reported crime nationwide, fueled by brazen snatch-and-run incidents on streets, in traffic, and on public transport.

Gilisho has said the system, which he spent more than two years and significant personal resources developing, works reliably on Android devices. He has indicated that a commercial launch is expected soon. Social media reaction has been largely positive, with many Kenyans praising the local ingenuity and the humorous yet practical deterrent of a phone that loudly accuses its carrier.

The approach combines immediate public deterrence (the screaming alarm) with practical recovery tools (location tracking). While questions remain about edge cases—such as thieves quickly plugging in earphones or attempting hardware interventions—the concept has already captured national attention after being featured on Citizen TV’s “Made in Kenya” segment.

For millions of smartphone users who rely on their devices for banking, work, communication, and personal records, Gilisho’s remote-to-watch system offers a distinctly Kenyan response to a distinctly local problem: turning the stolen phone into its own loudest witness.

Mustaqbal