Writes Leo Odera Omolo.
The retired President Daniel Arap Moi’s aide, who narrowly escaped punishment in a controversial court judgment after being found not guilt on a land fraud charges, was back again in court only after six days while facing a fresh court action related to frauds on government land.
Joshua Kulei has now been charged with conspiracy to defraud, six days after he was cleared in Kshs 272 million in fraud cases. The magistrate, Gilbert Matumbei, blamed the prosecution for having failed to prove its case by not presenting key witnesses to the court during the trial.
The former aide to the retired President Daniel Arap Moi is accused in the fresh charge of conspiracy to defraud Moi International Airport,Mombasa of 12 pieces of land.
Kulei is jointly charged with Wilson Gachanja, former Commissioner of Land, and former managing director of the Kenya Pipeline Company, Ezekiel Komen, former Airport Authority CEO, Peter Langat, and a businessman, Prakash Bhundia.
The five were first arraigned in court in January 2010 alongside three companies-The Gas Company, Ashar Limited and Sian Limited – but the case failed to take off because Mr Bhundia was in the UK and the State had not been able to extradite him.
Kulei is said to have illegally obtained Kshs 12 million from East African Gas Company, in May 1999, by pretending that Ashar Limited had rendered engineering and foundation laying services on its behalf.
He is further facing another charge of obtaining Kshs 5.9 million from East African Gas in May 1999 by pretending that Shian Limited, a firm associated with him, had paid land rent, rates, and assessment fees, on behalf of the company.
Gachanja, Langat and Bhundia are accused of facilitating the transfer of 12 parcels of land irregularly excised from Moi International Airport in Mombasa to East African Gas Company Limited in May 1999.
Langat is separately charged with a second count of directing a land surveying consultancy firm to survey the land at Moi International Airport and excise all plots that had been allocated from the airport authority to private individuals when no such allocation had been done.
Gachanja faces another charge of directing a senior land officer to issue letters of allotment in respect of alienated public land belonging to Kenya Airport Authority.
Komen is accused of breach of trust by authorizing the payment of Kshs 65.2 million from the bank account of East African Gas Company..
The accused is said to have been a signatory on behalf of the pipeline company, which owned a 45 per cent stake on behalf of the government.
They have all denied the consolidated economic crime charges of conspiracy to defraud, abuse of office, breach of trust and obtaining money by false pretences. The four except Mr Bhundia are put on Kshs 1 million bonds.
When the case came up on Monday this week, the Attorney General told the court that the state was awaiting a response from a Westminster magistrate’s court to orders for the extradite Mr Bhundia to Kenya. He requested an adjournment to have Bundia reply to the charges.
The Principal Magistrate Lucy Nyambura ruled that the State consult with the defense lawyrs on whether to proceed without M Bhundia.
The case will be mentioned on May 18, 2011.
Ends