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An 80-year-old cancer patient has accused Dalmas Otieno’s wife of conning her out of Sh20 million.
Kenyan born Margaret Soares sued Jane Otieno at Milimani Commercial Courts claiming she supplied goods worth millions to Mrs Otieno between June and December 1995, who has reportedly refused to pay her.
Soares says she has been too sick to follow up on the matter. “I am very old, and I have had both my breasts amputated due to cancer. I still have the disease and I need to go to Italy every few months for treatment. I can’t afford to go for treatment next month because Mrs Otieno has refused to pay me.
The interest alone at five per cent per annum for the sum she owes me for the past 20 years adds up to Sh8 million. I am pleading with her to just pay me the principal amount so that I can pay for adequate treatment,” says Soares.
She showed The Nairobian an M-Pesa message confirming that she received money from Mrs Otieno last week. She had sent her Sh3,000.
“That amount is not even enough to buy pain killers. I have lived a good life in Kenya, I don’t know why I should suffer in my old age when I am about to die. It’s better to die because my time has come, but not because I can’t afford treatment for my illness,” says Soares.
Soares took Mrs Otieno to court in 2013 and the court ordered the latter to pay the debt plus interest. “I filed one case under my company for Sh10 million and another one under my name for Sh8 million. The one under my company was thrown out by the court because I didn’t sue her in good time. The other case filed under my name was heard to conclusion and she was ordered to pay me. She has refused to obey a court order to pay me. I know she is waiting for me to die because I am old and sick. If my husband was alive, she wouldn’t do this to me,” says Soares.
In a court judgement at the Milimani High Court under file HCCC No 660 of 2005, Justice Ogola ordered Jane Otieno to pay the plaintiff Sh8 million plus interest.
In the judgement delivered on February 28, 2013, the judge ordered that since the defendant had agreed to pay the debt in instalments, she was to pay Sh3,365,968 immediately. “the balance of Sh4,634,032 be liquidated by way of monthly instalments in the following order - 1st instalment of Sh1,634,032 be paid on or before the end of February 2013; 2nd installment of Sh1,000,000 to be paid on or before 30th March 2013; 3rd installment of Sh1,000,000 to be paid on or before April 30, 2013; 4th installment of Sh1,000,000 to be paid on or before May , 30 2013.
The judge further ordered that if Mrs Otieno defaults on one instalment, she be held in contempt of court since she has owed the money since 1995 and the judgement was entered in 2013, 18 years later.
To date, according to a court-issued application for execution of decree at the High Court of Kenya in Nairobi, Mrs Otieno has so far only paid Sh625,000 out the principal amount of Sh8 million and has a pending balance of Sh7,375,000.
The decree seeks “by way of notice to show cause why the debtor Jane Otieno should not be arrested and committed to civil jail for failure to satisfy a court decree.”
When contacted, Mrs Otieno response via a text message was: “Is it Standard Group that I owe money? How much do I owe and which department should I pay it to?”
