Kerich avoids jail as Sh30m payment secures freedom

Former Nairobi finance chief Charles Kerich has had a three-month jail term lifted after the High Court set aside contempt orders following a settlement agreement.

The High Court rescinded the custodial sentence after Kerich and the law firm Kwengu and Company Advocates reached an agreement in a protracted Sh106.7 million legal fees dispute that included an immediate payment of Sh30 million.

On Thursday, Kerich and the law firm presented a payment schedule that persuaded Justice Francis Gikonyo to set aside the contempt order that had required the former county executive to serve a three-month jail term at Industrial Area Remand Prison.

The proceedings took a new turn after Kerich's legal team informed the court that the parties had reached a settlement.

Kerich had personally remitted Sh30 million to the law firm, with the balance to be paid according to a schedule tabled before the court.

Justice Gikonyo, acknowledging Kerich's demonstrated remorse, set aside the contempt order and lifted the custodial sentence.

Kerich attributed the delayed settlement to county bureaucracy, saying administrative processes within City Hall had delayed resolution of the debt.

The contempt proceedings arose from Kerich's failure to comply with court directives requiring Nairobi County to settle Sh106.7 million in legal fees owed to Kwengu and Company Advocates for services rendered on behalf of Foton East Africa Limited.

The High Court issued a Certificate of Order against the government in November 2024, formalising the county's obligation to release the funds.

On May 19, Justice Gikonyo found Kerich guilty of contempt and sentenced him to three months' imprisonment without the option of a fine, citing his deliberate failure to comply with the payment directives.

After Kerich failed to surrender following the May sentencing, the court on July 7 warned that he had three days to present himself or face arrest.

"I decline to set aside or suspend the sentence imposed by this court," Justice Gikonyo ruled at the time.

"If he can present himself to court, let him present himself to the relevant authority." The judge further warned: "If he continues like that, then this court will treat him as a fugitive."

Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja suspended Kerich from office on June 5 and appointed Ibrahim Auma Nyangoya as acting County Executive Committee Member for Finance.

The county assembly had also ordered Kerich's arrest after he failed to appear before the Committee on Implementation to discuss the 2026-27 county budget.