KRA officer charged in Sh4m bribe case

By Isaiah Lucheli

Nairobi, Kenya: An assistant commissioner with the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has been arraigned in court and charged with soliciting a Sh4 million bribe.

Richard Njoroge Kimani, alias Richard Symon Kimani Njoroge, a commissioner of the Domestic Tax Department pleaded not guilty to three counts of anti-corruption and economic crimes before anti-graft magistrate Dorothy Nyakundi.

Kimani is facing three different charges, which include two of corruptly soliciting for benefit contrary to Section 39 (3) of the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Act on August 5 and 8 this year.

Third suit

He faces a third suit of corruptly receiving a benefit (bribe) on August 12.

Particulars of the charge stated that Kimani had on August 5 at Rovers Hotel within Nairobi County, being a person employed by KRA, corruptly solicited for a benefit of Sh4 million from Fredrick Kariuki Manasseh as an inducement.

The bribe, according to the charge sheet, was meant to stop KRA from charging Manasseh for non-submission of self-assessment returns to the tax collector for M/S Freemark Graphic Machines and Printer Ltd.

He is also accused that on August 12 at the National Oil petrol station along the Haile Selassie Avenue he corruptly received over Sh93,000 as inducement to forebear charging Manasseh for the offence of non-submission of self-assessment returns to the revenue authority.

Bail application

After hearing both the defence and prosecution, the magistrate accepted the former’s bail application. Kimani was slapped with a Sh2 million cash bail.

However, the defence prayed the court to reduce the amount of bail imposed on the suspect, saying it was too high.

But the magistrate declined and told the counsel to seek a review of the order at the High Court.

Kimani further requested that the prosecution serves him with all documents and video clips intended to be used in the suit.

But investigators told the court that the defence could only watch the videos at the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission office.

The matter will be heard on November 11.