Kenya Revenue Authority ordered to pay Rwandese Sh28 million

The Court of Appeal has awarded $276,000 (Sh28,152,000) to a Rwandese businessman whose trucks were illegally seized and detained for three years and 10 months in 1998 by the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA).

The appellate court slapped the penalty on KRA after it found that the taxman had illegally detained two trucks belonging to Habimana Sued Hemed, who had been contracted to transport two containers of second hand clothes and shoes.

The decision by the Court of Appeal comes 17 years after KRA seized the trucks and follows a 13-year legal battle between the two parties.

KRA had moved to the Court of Appeal to challenge the High Court decision, which awarded the Rwandese businessman $84,000 per month for loss of income from October 28, 1998 till August 2002 when the trucks were released. Justice John Osiemo had also awarded Sh5,000,000 in general damages with 18 per cent interest from October 18 till full payment and costs of the suit in his judgement delivered in February 27, 2006.

According to the Court of Appeal decision, Mr Habimana was served with notices by KRA after he went to Tigoni Police Station to check on one of his trucks after it had developed mechanical problems while on its way to Mombasa.

Unaccustomed goods

The notices of seizure informed him that the trucks were seized because they were suspected to have been used to convey unaccustomed goods contrary the Customs and Excise Act.

Though the then Attorney General terminated charges arising from the seizure of the trucks on May 19, 1999, KRA failed to release the trucks. Habimana filed a suit at the High Court in 2001. Appellate judges Wanjiru Karanja, Philomena Mwilu and Festus Azangalala faulted KRA for its failure to release the trucks and dismissed its argument that they were being used as exhibits in a criminal case.

"The $60,000 (Sh6,071,610) was clearly pleaded and so the appellant was not ambushed. The extra amount of $24,000 (Sh2,428,644) which was not pleaded may have ambushed the appellant and we have disallowed that claim," the judges said.