Man ordered to pay Hezekiah Oyugi estate Sh3.8m unpaid rent

The Environment and Lands Court in Nakuru has ordered a tenant to pay more than Sh3.8 million for occupying property without paying rent for 240 months.

Laban Cheptarus reportedly owed the estate of former Internal Security PS Hezekiah Oyugi rent arrears between March 2004 and March 2024.

In the judgment by Justice Mwangi Njoroge, Cheptarus is to pay the estate Sh3,840,000, an amount that will accrue a monthly interest of Sh16,000.

The court further issued a mandatory injunction compelling the man to vacate the suit land and to give vacant possession to Oyugi’s estate within 90 days.

“A permanent injunction is hereby issued restraining the defendant by himself, his servants or agents or otherwise howsoever from remaining on or continuing in occupation of the said property after the expiry of 90 days from the date of this order or re-entry thereafter,” ordered the court.

Justice Njoroge ordered the Land Registrar Nakuru to cancel the registration of Cheptarus from the land registry records and reinstate Hezekiah Oyugi as proprietor of the land.

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The court issued the orders following a case filed by Oyugi's sons, Job Okuna Oyugi, Douglas Odhiambo Oyugi, and Joshua Ogango Oyugi. 

They named Cheptarus, Doreen Aribeta Oyugi and the Attorney General, as respondents in the case.

Aribeta, a widow to the late Oyugi, allegedly sold the land to Cheptarus.

They claimed that she dealt with their late father’s land by selling it to the Cheptarus without any capacity, having not taken out any grant of letters of administration to his estate.

The suit property, according to Okuna, was a rental single-family residential house in Milimani Estate, Nakuru, and Cheptarus was a tenant. He said he had not paid rent since 2002.

Okuna told the court that Cheptarus said that he purchased the suit property for Sh1.5 million.

But Cheptarus in his defence, denied the claims by Oyugi’s sons and insisted that he was a bona fide purchaser.

He told the court that he was a tenant in 2004 for three months before he purchased the property.

Aribeta said she issued Cheptarus with a title deed upon compliance with due procedure.

Justice Njoroge ruled that the title issued to Cheptarus was obtained illegally and unprocedurally.

“It is thus my finding that since the title of the defendant was obtained illegally and unprocedurally, the estate of the deceased Hezekiah Oyugi is still the rightful proprietor of land parcel No. Nakuru Municipality Block 12/30,” he ruled.

The Judge ordered Cheptarus and Aribeta to bear the costs of the suit jointly.