- Prosecution withdraws charges against 14 who will now be state witnesses.
Image: MAURICE ALAL
A warrant of arrest has been issued against former Kisumu county assembly speaker Onyango Oloo.
Anti-corruption magistrate Douglas Ogoti issued the warrant after Oloo failed to appear in court for the mention of the Sh4.1 billion Lake Basin Development Authority mall fraud case.
At the same time, the prosecution withdrew the charges against 14 accused persons who will now be state witnesses.
Ogoti directed that their cash bail be reimbursed and passports deposited in court released to them.
In the amended charge sheet, Peter Abok has been charged alongside Onyango Oloo, George Odawa, Innocent Momanyi, Oscar Ogunde, Vincent Makonjio, Lydiah Owino, Zhang Jing, John Yang, Ederman Property, Symbion Kenya and Feradon Associates.
They allegedly conspired to defraud the authority of Sh667 million in respect of a tender for construction, development and financing of a retail mall at Kanyakwar, Kisumu, known as Lake Basin Development Authority, Lower Kanyakwar Phase 1 Project. The offences were committed between 12 January 2013 and May 2018.
According to the charge sheet, Oloo as the chairman of the authority is further accused of corruptly receiving a benefit of Sh15 million from Erderman Property.
The money was an inducement to facilitate the allocation of funds to the authority for the project.
The directors of Erderman (Zhang Jing and John Zeyun Yang) are accused of corruptly giving a benefit of Sh7.6 million to George Odawa, a board member of LBDA, as an inducement to influence the decisions of the board and committee in their favour regarding the construction of the project.
The case will proceed on April 27.
Edited by Henry Makori