Guilty as charged: Court to KEPHIS Assistant Plant Inspector
1:08:2024: An Anti-Corruption Court in Milimani has found an Assistant Plant Inspector at the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Services (KEPHIS) guilty of fraudulently acquiring public funds and providing false information to a public entity.
Chief Magistrate, Hon. Thomas Nzioki, convicted Juma Mwadama Zinje for acquiring Kes4,746,834.38, a salary earned from KEPHIS. He was also convicted on two other counts of providing false information to a public entity, being information filled in the KEPHIS employment form where he stated that he possessed a Diploma in Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development from Baraka Agricultural College and a Certificate in Agriculture from Kilifi Institute of Agriculture respectively.
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) received a complaint on June 8, 2021, from the Managing Director of KEHPIS alleging that Juma Mwadama Zinje forged academic certificates and used them to apply to join the entity.
The Commission conducted investigations and established that the suspect forged a Diploma Certificate in Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development purportedly issued by Baraka Agricultural College, a Certificate in Agriculture from Kilifi Institute of Agriculture, and a Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education Mean Grade C to secure employment as an Assistant Plant Inspector II at KEPHIS.
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) concurred with the Commission’s recommendation to charge the suspect. Mr. Mwadama was arrested and arraigned on 12 counts of various offenses before the Anti-Corruption Court in Milimani on May 25, 2023. These included one count of fraudulent acquisition of Kes4.75 being salary paid to him by KEPHIS, three counts of providing false information, four of forgery of Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education, Certificate in Agriculture from Kilifi Institute of Agriculture, Diploma Certificate in Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development and an academic transcript in Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development from Baraka Agricultural College, and four other counts of uttering the said forged certificates respectively.
The Court heard that on February 8, 2013, at KEPHIS within Nairobi County, Mr. Mwadama knowingly provided false information in the KEPHIS Employment Application Form KEPHIS/EAI/1 by stating that he had a Diploma in Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development from Baraka Agricultural College, a Certificate in Agriculture with Distinction from Kilifi Institute of Agriculture, and a Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education with a Mean Grade C, which information he knew or believed to be false.
On various dates between June 26, 2013, and April 24, 2021, within Nairobi County, the Court was also told, he fraudulently acquired Kes4,746,834.38 from KEPHIS as monthly salaries as a public officer employed as an Assistant Inspector II.
The Court, however, acquitted Mr. Mwadama on the four counts of forgery on July 30, 2024 when he was put to his defense on the remaining eight counts.
Hon. Nzioki delivered his judgement on July 30, 2024. He convicted the accused on one count of fraudulent acquisition of public funds and two counts of providing false information to a public entity. He was acquitted of uttering false documents since the chain of custody had not been established.
The Court reconvenes on August 19, 2024, for sentencing.
