On Wednesday, eight Kenya Ports Authority officials faced six corruption-related charges related to a Sh 62 million Tender before the Mombasa Anti-Corruption Court.
Chief Magistrate Alex Ithuku presided over the arraignment of the suspects, namely: KPA Civil Engineering department Senior Clerical Officer, Robert Bosuben, Chemiso East Africa Account signatory Rose Cherotich and the authority’s agents Idd Arube Nanyang and Azenath Kwamboka Mageto.
Others involved in the case are Yobesh Oyaro, the former head of procurement and supplies at KPA, along with members of the KPA tender evaluation committee, namely David Angwenyi, Norah Mugambi, and Athanase Wambari.
The suspects faced charges of fraudulent acquisition of public property, a violation of Section 45(1) (a) as read with Section 48 of the Anti-corruption and Economic Crimes Act, 2003.
They were also charged with conflict of interest, contravening Section 42 (3) as read with Section 48 of the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Act No. 3 of 2003.
Additionally, they faced charges of money laundering under Section 3(a)(i) as read with Section 16 of the Proceeds of Crime and Anti-Money Laundering Act, No. 9 of 2009, and obtaining a contract from a public institution by false pretense, a violation of Section 313 of the Penal Code.
Forgery charges were also brought against the accused under Section 348, read in conjunction with Section 349 of the Penal Code, and uttering false documents under Section 353 of the Penal Code.
Suspects Plead Not Guilty
The suspects entered pleas of not guilty to the charges and requested to be released on reasonable bond terms.
The prosecution, represented by Principal Prosecution Counsel Alex Gituma and Prosecution Counsel Yassir Mohamed, did not raise objections to the release of the suspects on bond.
In his ruling, Ithuku granted varied bond terms to the suspects. Bosuben, Cherotich, Nanyang, and Mageto were released on a 2 million shillings bond with one surety of a similar amount or an alternative cash bail of 500,000 shillings.
Furthermore, Oyaro, Angwenyi, Mugambi, and Wambari were released on a 1 million shillings bond with one surety of a similar amount or an alternative cash bail of 100,000 shillings.
Magistrate Ithuku also summoned another tender evaluation committee member, David Arika, who has since retired from KPA.
The court directed Arika to appear before the court on February 7, 2024, during a pre-trial conference. During this conference, the defense will be provided with witness statements and other evidence in preparation for the trial.
