Mombasa court frees 3 businessmen on Sh20 billion theft due to shoddy investigations

(Photo: Courtesy)

The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has withdrawn theft charges against three men accused of swindling a businessman of shares worth Sh20 billion.

Principle State counsel Jami Yamina told the court that the DPP was seeking the withdrawal of the case after he established that the police had conducted shoddy investigations which could neither sustain the charges nor lead to conviction.

“The DPP has, therefore, directed the Director of Directorate of Criminal Investigation to form a team from Mombasa and Nairobi to investigate complex fraud involving the six companies cited in the case,” said Jamii.

Following the DPP’s application on Thursday, Mombasa Senior Resident Magistrate Edgar Kagoni freed Paresh Shiviji Parbat, Shivji Jadava Parbat and Victor Arara Were to allow the police to conduct thorough investigations.

The trio were freed under Section 87 of the Penal Code that enables the DPP to charge them in future if actionable evidence is established.

No right

The development did not go well with the defense. Led by lawyers Ngachaku Gakui and Jared Magoloo, they argued that the DPP had no right to withdraw the charges saying it would amount to trampling on their rights.

The defense insisted that the prosecution should allow the case to proceed so that the court can decide whether the accused had a case to answer or not.

While rejecting the defense’s prayer, Magolo accused the prosecution of charging the suspects with ten counts before conducting proper investigations, which he said was trampling on their rights.

The three were charged jointly with others not before the court with illegally transferring one ordinary share valued at Sh20 billion, between April 14, 2002 and January 31, 2006 in Mombasa. This was the property of the late Premji Jina Manji Pindolia.