Televangelist David Kariuki Ngari alias Gakuyo/HandoutA Nairobi court has heard that more than Sh1 billion was transferred from Ekeza Sacco to Gakuyo Real Estate, a company linked to the Sacco’s founder, David Kariuki Ngari, also known as Gakuyo.
Testifying on Tuesday before Magistrate Mark Ekhubi, inquiry officer Stephen Njoroge, who was appointed by the Commissioner for Cooperatives to investigate Ekeza’s operations, said his audit revealed significant fund movements from member contributions to private entities associated with Ngari.
Njoroge told the court that, despite being the founder, Ngari made no personal financial contributions to the Sacco, yet funds were directed to entities linked to him.
“According to our findings, a total of Sh1,052,746,094 was channelled either to Gakuyo Real Estate, its legal advocates, or used to support other activities, including church-related operations,” said Njoroge during cross-examination.
He maintained that Ekeza Sacco did not adhere to standard cooperative governance practices.
However, the defence team disputed several aspects of the audit and inquiry report, questioning its accuracy and completeness.
Ngari’s lawyers argued that the officer had not presented definitive documentation to prove their client had never contributed to the Sacco.
“If you don’t have records of all member contributions, how can you affirm that he saved nothing?” a defence lawyer asked.
In response, Njoroge said he relied on available data and stood by the inquiry’s findings.
“For the purpose of our report, we established that David Kariuki Ngari owned Gakuyo Real Estate, which we attributed to him,” he said.
The defence also questioned whether some transactions between Sacco members and Gakuyo Real Estate may have been voluntary, suggesting the inquiry may have mischaracterised the nature of the engagements.
They further challenged the inference that all funds directed to the company constituted personal gain by Ngari.
Njoroge acknowledged encountering such cases but said he did not have a consolidated figure of how many members may have paid directly to the firm.
Ngari faces charges of conspiracy to commit a felony and 12 counts of obtaining money by false pretence, stemming from allegations that he and Ekeza Sacco misled members into investing over Sh1 billion in real estate and money markets.
The hearing continues on August 6, 2025.
