Man, wife in court after ‘faking death’

Ezekiel Ochieng Ogoma and his wife Rachel Adhiambo Omondi at the Milimani Law Courts yesterday. They denied conspiring to defraud Jubilee Insurance of Sh600,665. [PHOTO: FIDELIS KABUNYI/STANDARD]

Nairobi, Kenya: A couple has for the second time been charged in a Nairobi court for claiming compensation from an  insurance company by faking death.

 Ezekiel Ogoma, who is alleged to have died in a road accident on Kisumu-Siaya Road in January last year, and his wife Rachel Adhiambo appeared before Milimani Senior Principal Magistrate Peter Ndwiga and denied five counts of forgery and fraud.

The two were charged with attempting to defraud  Jubilee Insurance Company Limited of Sh600,665 on September 26 last year by faking Ogoma’s death, contrary to Section 313 of the Penal Code, while pretending that he had died on January 29 in a road crash.

Prosecutor Richard Ondimu said the accused “knew he had not died” in the alleged accident.

They were also charged with forging a register of death serial No. 43013291, alleging it had been signed by FK Idwasi, civil registrar, Siaya County.

The couple was also accused of forging a police abstract form dated July 5, 2013. In the abstract, Ogoma was confirmed to have died in the road accident involving a vehicle KBG 332A along the Kisumu-Siaya road.

The couple was directed by the magistrate to deposit a cash bail of Sh500,000 or a bond of a similar amount failure to which they would remain in custody pending the hearing and determination of their case.

In April, Ogoma and his wife were charged with conspiring to defraud Pan Africa Assurance Company of Sh634,936 by pretending that Ogomo died on Febraury 28, last year.