A Meru court on Thursday ordered the anti-graft agency to supply documentary evidence statements to eight suspects.
The suspects are charged with corruption in a Sh200 million Meru County Hotel scandal. Among them is Kenya National Trading Corporation acting managing director Joel Imitira.
Chief magistrate Lucy Ambasi also ruled the suspects appear in court on May 30, for confirmation of the orders and to set the pretrial dates.
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission, through its legal counsels, had applied to have the court to compel the suspects to pay Sh3,000 each for them to be given copies of documents and witnesses’ statements which the prosecution intends to use in the trial.
The EACC said the documentary evidence statements were so bulky.
In the case, Imitira and seven co-accused have been charged with corruption. Others are Miriam Nkatha, Jephitha Kirimi, Sharon Chepkorir, Isaiah Thuranira, Denis Ford Karani, Acqulino Thilange and Kenneth Kinoti.
They were released on a Sh20,000 police cash bail each before they appeared in court.
The eight, who are represented by a battery of lawyers, denied six counts of flouting procurement laws.
Defence lawyers Dickson Munene, Thuranira Athiru and Nimrod Munene told the court it was illegitimate for the EACC to ask for payments from the suspects so that they can be supplied with materials which will be tabled in court during trial.
“We have not heard of any case where the accused are compelled to pay to get documentary evidence," Munene said.
The prosecution led by James Kinyua accused the former and current employees of the Meru county government of violating the law during the bidding of tenders for the renovation of the Sh200 million Meru County Hotel.
All the accused worked for the Meru County Investment and Development Corporation (Meru-IDC) and allegedly committed the offences during the former county regime.
The court heard that on November 19, 2015, the accused being public officers and serving as tender committee members of Meru-IDC and being persons whose function concern management of public property, they jointly and wilfully failed to comply with the law relating to procurement.
According to the prosecution, the suspects also failed to ensure that there was an approved list of persons qualified to submit proposals from the said tender.
Imitira, who is the former managing director of the Meru-IDC and the co-accused, where arrested by detectives from the Ethic and Anti- corruption Commission and taken to the regional offices in Isiolo for questioning.
Thorough their lawyers, they managed to convince the court to free them on similar lenient terms.
