The High Court has allowed the Ethics and Anti-corruption Commission (EACC) to recover Ksh11 million obtained by an education official who established a ghost school in 2017.
According to the antigraft agency, Joshua Momanyi Ocharo, while working at the Ministry of Education, established a ghost school called Mundeku Secondary School, purportedly located in Khwisero Sub-County, Kakamega County and consistently allocated it government funds meant for the Free Day Secondary Education Programme.
According to court filings, Momanyi, whose duties in the Ministry entailed preparation of Funds Distribution Schedules, added the name of the non-existent school into the payment records, and inserted his personal bank account number, against the ghost school which he represented as a legitimate beneficiary.
Amount received by the ghost school
In his ruling, Justice Prof Nixon Sifuna found that Momanyi conceived and executed a fraudulent scheme through which he received Ksh11,131,305.53.
“The theft took place on diverse dates between 22nd August 2017 and 18th June 2018 Momanyi used part of the money to buy a Toyota Vanguard vehicle and two prime parcels of land which the High Court declared proceeds of crime that should be forfeited to the government,” EACC stated.
EACC says a file recommending his prosecution has since been forwarded to the Office of the Directorate of Public Prosecutions.
