How Tom Ojienda was lured out to street, arrested

Lawyer Tom Ojienda was arrested on Friday on suspicion of faking court proceedings. [File, Standard]

Details of how police and Nairobi county officials lured lawyer Tom Ojienda out of a building so that he could be arrested have emerged.

Police claimed they had been looking for Prof Ojienda, a Judicial Service Commission member, for two days. On Friday, he was driven to Barclays Plaza along Loita Street to run errands.

After he left, his driver called and informed him that his car had been clamped.

Ojienda called City Hall officials as he sought help to have his car unclamped.

And as he walked to the car, police pounced on him and declared he was under arrest. A few minutes later, the car was unclamped and the driver told to leave.

As Ojienda arrived at the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) headquarters along Kiambu Road, an ally of Deputy President William Ruto called him, saying he had been arrested and needed his legal help.

Samuel Mburu, who is married to Nakuru Senator Susan Kihika, had also been arrested over an alleged Sh64 million fraud and taken to the DCI headquarters.

“Ojienda told Mburu he was also under arrest and was arriving at DCI. He sounded shocked about the police move,” said a witness who was present.

The lawyer spent his third night at Muthaiga police station ahead of the planned arraignment.

Yesterday, the station was teeming with lawyers, friends and relatives, with lawyer Ahmednasir Abdullahi saying his team would fight the proposed charges.

Police searched Ojienda's office in Muthaiga area as part of preparations to charge him. They carried away documents.

Ojienda, who represented former Mumias Managing Director Evans Kidero in some cases, is to be arraigned alongside the sugar miller's former company finance director, Peter Kibati, and secretary, Emily Otieno.

According to Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Noordin Haji, the three will also be charged with abuse of office and uttering false documents.

The DPP said Mumias Sugar Company lost Sh89 million that was paid out through fraudulent schemes. Ojienda is also accused of faking court proceedings to obtain money as legal fees from the sugar miller.

Ojienda issued a statement from the cells saying he has never filed a fake case: “I have read the Director of Public Prosecution’s statement with utter shock and disbelief... These charges sound like a big joke and reek of malice, bad faith and fly in the face of the fundamental duty of an advocate to receive instructions and charge fees from a client.

“I would like to state without any fear of contradiction that I do not, I cannot and I have never filed a fake case. I have never conspired with any person to be paid for work not done.”

Mburu too spent three nights at Muthaiga police cells.

His brother, Hillary Kamau, is also wanted by police. They run Landmark Freight Services Limited and will face charges for connivance to commit an offence and concealment of imported goods.

Police handling the case said they were ready for the charges today.

Other suspects include officials from the Kenya Bureau of Standards (Kebs) and the Customs Department. 

Mr Haji accused the officers of colluding with three companies to undervalue imported goods.

“Following numerous cases of evasion and avoidance of tax payment that has affected collection of Government revenue, the DCI commenced investigations with regard to mis-declarations and importation of contraband products into the country,” he said. 

Officials said they received information that Gendipre Enterprises and Rupai Trading Limited (importers) and their clearing agent, Landmark Freight Services Limited, with the help of custom and Kebs officers, concealed imported goods to evade taxes.

Haji accused some State officials, who will also be charged, of allowing goods to enter the country without requiring the companies to pay proper penalties for missing certificates of conformity.

Instead of the required 15 per cent, they allegedly paid a third of the amount allowed by law.

Further, they will face charges of abuse of office, neglect of official duty, wilful disobedience of statutory duty, and breach of trust. 

Most of the targeted officials had not been arrested and police said they expected them to present themselves last evening or today. 

Mburu was instrumental in the 2017 election campaigns, especially in Nakuru, for Jubilee Party. He was the patron of Team 100 – a group of young people actively involved in the party’s campaigns.

He had been called to DCI headquarters to record a statement on the issue on Friday before he was informed that he was under arrest.