Seven individuals implicated in the KSh 159 million fraud case involving Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC) have been put on their defense after the court found sufficient evidence to proceed with the case.
The former KPLC Managing Director, Ken Tarus, who was initially the first accused, was acquitted last year after the charges against him were dropped. Chief Magistrate Victor Wakumile ruled on Thursday that a prima facie case had been established against the remaining accused individuals.
“Upon evaluation of the evidence on record and the submissions by both parties, the court finds that a prima facie case has been established against the accused, except for Tare, whose case abated due to his demise,” the magistrate ruled.
The accused include Harun Karisa, the late English Daniel Tare, Eng. Noah Omondi, Daniel Muga, John Njehia, James Muriuki, Benard Muturi, and Everlyne Amondi.
Last year, the court allowed an application by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to withdraw the corruption charges against Ken Tarus. The case was marked as withdrawn after the DPP informed the court that no offense had been revealed against Tarus following a review of the available evidence. Anti-corruption magistrate Elizabeth Juma withdrew the charges under section 87(a) of the Criminal Procedure Code, stating that the court could not compel the DPP to proceed with the case if the DPP had decided not to.
The remaining accused are charged with conspiring to commit economic crimes by negligently failing to follow procurement procedures. Their alleged actions led to the fraudulent payment of KSh 159 million to companies that were improperly pre-qualified for labor and transport services under tender No. KPI/9AA-2/58/PJT/16-17.
The case will now proceed with the accused presenting their defense.
