Thirteen people, including former Lake Basin Development Authority MD Peter Abok, have been charged afresh in a graft case.
The accused appeared on Wednesday before Senior Principal Magistrate Eunice Nyutu after the court allowed the prosecution to amend the charge sheet where the two cases were consolidated.
It is alleged that between November 2, 2012 and May 2, 2018, the accused persons conspired to commit an offence of corruption leading to the loss of Sh4.5 million from Kisumu county.
In a statement via Twitter, Director of Public Prosecution Noordin Haji said all the accused denied the 21 counts which include; engaging in a project without prior planning, willful failure to comply with the law, unlawful charging of public property, unlawful issuance of a guarantee of the public finance management, fraudulent acquisition of public property.
"Other charges include; abuse of office, conflict of interest, corruptly receiving a benefit and deceiving the principal secretary," Haji said.
The case was adjourned for pre-trial on December 8, 2021.
When the case was mentioned on May 4, the prosecution said the accused persons conspired to inflate the cost of the construction of the mall from Sh2.5 billion to Sh4.1 billion.
The board members are also accused of approving the borrowing of Sh1.2 billion from Co-operative Bank, bringing the total borrowing to Sh2.5 billion.
According to the charges, the tender was awarded on March 14, 2013, and former LBDA boss Aguko and ex-chairman David Oyosi executed the agreement.
