Man who splashed Sh41m in 10 months loses property

Former National Water Conservation and Pipeline Corporation finance manager Stanley Mombo Amuti. [Courtesy]

The Supreme Court has paved the way for the government to auction property belonging to a former civil servant to recover Sh41 million that he siphoned 12 years ago.

The former National Water Conservation and Pipeline Corporation (NW&PC) finance manager Stanley Mombo Amuti spent Sh41 million in 10 months to spruce up his life, but could not explain where he got the money from.

And now, he will lose to the government each of the properties he bought, including a house in Komarocks, after the Supreme Court struck out his case. The top court ruled it had no powers to hear the case.

Amuti’s case set the benchmark for State agencies to go after graft lords. He was the first person to be found with unexplained wealth.

A five-judge bench led by Chief Justice David Maraga, his deputy Philomena Mwilu, Justices Mohamed Ibrahim, Smokin Wanjala, and Isaac Lenaona unanimously upheld an objection raised by Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC).

“Having held as above, it is our conclusion that Article 163(4) (a) was wrongfully invoked by the appellant and the Preliminary Objection is therefore merited. The appeal herein is struck out for want of jurisdiction under Article 163(4) (a) of the Constitution,” the judges ruled.

EACC had urged the top court to dismiss Amuti’s case as there was no dispute on the interpretation of the law in the lower courts. According to the EACC, the only issue on the table was whether he had unexplained wealth.

The court heard that Amuti earned Sh180,000 monthly salary. He, however, managed to buy, among other things, Toyota Land Cruiser, which is a high-end car, and lands.

Through lawyer Phillip Kagucia, the anti-graft watchdog argued that Amuti could not spend Sh41 million between September 1, 2007, and June 26, 2008, without showing receipts of where he sourced it. Investigators were drawn into Amuti’s life by deposits he made to his Barclays Bank account and to a foreign one — National West Minister Bank, PLC London.

On May 12, 2008, the court heard, Amuti went to Automated Teller Machines (ATM) 15 times, depositing into his account Sh100,000 on each visit. He deposited Sh1.5 million. The following day, he deposited Sh2 million.

Red flag

According to EACC it was not wrong for the man to have so much on him but failing to explain how he got it raised a red flag on how he sourced it. The court said the anti-graft body investigators found Amuti with Sh300,000 cash and upon raiding his house, they found Sh3.9 million cash.

“This was not his salary or rent. Where was the money coming from? It was impossible to also spend that much money without first acquiring it,” argued Kagucia.

Amuti was the first man in the country to have his property forfeited by the State on accusations of obtaining them through fraud. He, however, contested the same arguing that he was not required to explain how he got Sh41 million.

According to Amuti, EACC had notified him they were interested in probing his income for 16 years but narrowed down to a period of 10 months. In total, EACC was interested in Sh140 million. He claimed a man named Samuel advanced him Sh9 million and that he had charged an unknown Sudanese national Sh15.5 million as professional fees.

Amuti said he had another deal with Evelyn Mwaka and Anthony Mwaura to sell them a house in Komarock at Sh10.9 million. It was, however, realised that Mwaka and Mwaura were traders who had close links with NW&PC. Amuti told the court he bought the house way before the probe period and he ought to have it.

Amuti argued that the lead investigator in the case had admitted in his testimony before the High Court that he did not comprehend what debits and credits in accounting were. Amuti insisted it was unfair for EACC to take away his property yet he was not arraigned for graft charges.

“The appellant was not accused of corruption and has not been committed to any jail for abuse of office. He has also not been charged before any criminal court. I ask my lords to set aside the decree by the High Court,” argued Amuti.

But EACC told the court it did not require to have a person charged to go after him. In 2010, EACC moved to court seeking orders to freeze his accounts but Amuti went to the High Court in 2011 and got a reprieve. EACC appealed and in 2015 the Court of Appeal ruled in favour of the anti-graft body, paving way for the main suit to proceed.