Agnes Kagure loses court battle for Sh600 million Karen property

Businesswoman Agnes Kagure. [File, Standard] 

Nairobi businesswoman Agnes Kagure and Prover Haunt Limited have lost their succession claim to a Sh600 million Karen property formerly owned by the late British national Roger Bryan Robson.

In a ruling that vindicates lawyer Guy Spencer Elms, Justice Hillary Chemitei found no evidence that Robson had been coerced or mentally unfit when he wrote the will outlining the distribution of his estate.

“I have perused the original Will on record and in my view, there is nothing to fault. It was executed by the deceased and as a matter of fact, he signed all the pages. The same was witnessed by two persons and was drafted by an advocate,” said Justice Chemitei.

Spencer has been embroiled in a protracted legal battle to protect Robson’s estate. He was previously charged in relation to the property, but the case was dropped in 2019.

Robson died on August 8, 2012. In his will dated March 24, 1997, he appointed Spencer and Sean Battye as executors. Battye later stepped down after leaving the country.

In a twist to the succession case, Kagure and Prover Haunt Limited both moved to court to claim ownership of the same estate.

Haunt’s director, Thomas Mutaha, claimed Robson had been a family friend and had transferred the property to him as a gift, without any sale agreement.

Kagure, in her case, presented Sergeant Felix Kalasya as a witness. Kalasya testified that Mutaha had been charged in 2016 in connection with the same property.

Meanwhile, Chief Inspector Susan Wanjiru told the court that the signatures on the will appeared to be from different individuals.

Another witness, Cyrus Ngatia—who identified himself as Deputy Solicitor General and a former Registrar of Companies—disputed the signature on the company’s registration documents and denied knowing an individual named Lagat.

A sixth witness supporting Kagure and Haunt, DCI officer John Muinde, also alleged inconsistencies in the signatures.

In defence, Spencer called several witnesses, including Anastacia Kioko, John Masese, Mohamed Khan, Ann Kosgey, Lilian Gathigihia, David Muthee, Japheth Oduor, Nafsya Abdallah, and Robson’s brother, Michael Fairfax.

Fairfax was the key witness in the case. He testified that his brother had never sold the property to Kagure. Other witnesses denied any knowledge of Mutaha.

Kagure, in her submissions, asked the court to declare the will invalid. However, Spencer countered that neither Kagure nor Haunt had the legal authority to file such objections.

Although Kagure claimed she had purchased the property in cash a year before Robson’s death, the judge noted she had not presented sufficient evidence to support the claim.

He dismissed the objections and ordered Kagure and Haunt to pay Spencer the costs of the case.

In his will, Robson had wished for the Karen property, which borders Ngong Forest, to be gifted to the Kenya Wildlife Service, the Kenya Forest Service, and an education charity.

Kagure, however, alleged that she had bought the land and accused Spencer of forging Robson’s will. Robson, who died without children, left money to a nephew but had not named Kagure in any testamentary documents. She maintains that she was a bona fide purchaser.

In a separate judgment concerning the same property, Justice Lucy Njuguna said police were actively aiding fraudsters in attempts to dispossess Spencer of the land.