The office of the Director of Public Prosecution has expressed frustration after the Sh5 billion Anglo-leasing scandal case was adjourned just when their last witness was set to testify.
State prosecutor Eva Kanyuira told Nairobi Chief Magistrate Martha Mutuku on Thursday, February 11, that the prosecution is frustrated since the case has not taken off for days.
Kanyuira asked the three senior counsels — Kioko Kilukumi, Fred Ngatia and Ahmednasir Abdullahi — who are representing the four remaining suspects to take the matter seriously as the case has dragged in court for six years now.
“Your honour other dates have been taken out since March 2020. The witness we are calling is no longer an officer at EACC [Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission] and his presence in court is not as easy as it could be,” said Kanyuira.
The accused include the now-deceased former Finance minister David Mwiraria, former Permanent Secretary in charge of Provincial Administration in the Office of the President Dave Munya, Joseph Mbui Magari, David Lumumba Onyonka, now-deceased Rashmi Chamanlal Kamani, Deepak Kamani, and Infotalent Limited.
The suspects were charged with conspiracy to defraud the government of Kenya of over Sh5 billion.
Now the state prosecutor wanted their last witness, an EACC officer, to testify but the case was adjourned.
This after one of the accused, the former PS Munya, told the court that his lawyer, Kioko Kilukumi, refused to come to court to represent him.
Munya said that he has unresolved issues with Kilukumi that need to be sorted first hence the request for another hearing date.
The suspects were charged for the alleged offense that allegedly occurred between July 2003 and July 2004 in Nairobi.
The state prosecutor alleged that the suspects conspired to defraud the Kenyan government of €59,688,250 through a supplier financing agreement for the computerisation of security law and order system for the Kenya Police Service code-named E-cops.
They were charged with 10 counts, ranging from conspiracy to defraud, abuse of office, disobedience of statutory duty, breach of trust, engaging in a project without prior planning and fraudulent acquisition of public property
Now only four accused persons are left in the case following the death of two suspects.
So far, 49 witnesses have testified against the suspects.
