Ol Kalou NG-CDF fraud suspects take plea in a Nyahururu Anti-Corruption Court
8:05:2024: The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has today arraigned 9 suspects before Senior Principal Magistrate Hon. Stephen Mogute of the Anti-Corruption Court in Nyahururu in relation to suspected embezzlement of Kes55,833,650 from the Ol Kalou NG-CDF.
The nine, including the fund’s chair, John Kimani; and account manager, Ludovick Gachara have pleaded not guilty to 16 counts of anti-corruption and economic crimes related offences.
The others include proprietors of the seven private companies that were involved in the conspiracy to defraud the Ol Kalou NG-CDF. They are director of Spenroh International Ltd, Jerush Wambui; director of Rodney Enterprises Ltd, Samuel Gachuki; proprietor Sadell Enterprises, Peter Mwangi; proprietor of Design Jet Copiers, Charles Ndung’u; proprietors of Wheel Safety Enterprises, Janerose Wachira and Titus Kariuki; and director of Laurenzo Enterprises, Dominic Mulwa.
They were charged in count 1 with conspiracy to commit an offence of corruption. The Court heard that on diverse dates between May 28th and June 18th 2014 the accused conspired to facilitate the transfer of Kes55,833,650 from the Ol Kalou Road Project Committee bank account No. 062026239391 at Equity Bank Ol Kalou ostensibly for implementation of road works in the constituency, which did not take place.
The three officials of the fund; Kimani, kariuki and Gachara were also charged exclusively with willful failure to comply with the law relating to management of funds, and abuse of office.
All the accused were also charged with various counts of fraudulent acquisition of public property.
The nine who were arraigned today pleaded not guilty to all the charges and were released on a cash bail of Kes2 million each or a Kes5 million with a surety of a similar amount in the alternative. Court will reconvene on 23rd of May 2024 for the first mention.
Accused number two, Simon Kariuki who is also a member of the fund committee is indisposed on medical grounds and did not, therefore, plead to the charges.
