Haji, DCI back from two-weeks dams probe trip

Cyrus Ombati 22nd Jul 2019 00:00:00 GMT +0300

Director of Public Prosecution Noordin Haji and his team jetted back into the country at the weekend after two weeks in Italy and Dubai in an ongoing corruption probe.

Mr Haji's team and officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations led by George Kinoti were pursuing leads in an investigation into the stalled Sh65 billion Arror and Kimwarer dams.

The dams were to be built in Elgeyo Marakwet County.

Officials aware of the trip said the teams obtained important leads that will help them launch their next course of action.

“We expect recovery of the lost money and possible prosecution in the coming days. They had fruitful meetings,” said an official aware of the trip.

The team left Kenya on July 9 for Italy where they were to meet an Italian Government-owned insurer, Service Assicurativi Del Comercio Estero (SACE), which was paid Sh11.1 billion as insurance premium for a loan to build the two dams.

But SACE said the meeting did not take place as planned.

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“For the sake of clarity and transparency, please note that no SACE representative has met with Kenyan detectives, and no meeting has been requested or planned in Italy,” a statement from the company said.

“SACE operates in rigorous compliance with the relevant regulatory framework - including the OECD standards - and looks forward to the outcome of current investigations.”

In Dubai, the officials sought mutual agreements on how they can enhance and fast-track the probe.

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