Pritesh Ashok Shah: The Nairobi-based fugitive jailed for fraud in UK

Nairobi-based fugitive jailed in the UK for fraud and forgery. [File Courtesy] On November 19, 2025, a jury at Southwark Crown Court returned unanimous verdicts on six counts against Pritesh Ashok Kumar Jetha Shah. Shah was not at the trial. There were three counts of fraud by false representation, one count of doing an act tending and intended to pervert the course of public justice, and two counts of forgery. The total value of the fraud for which Shah was convicted exceeds US$1.7 million. At the time of the offences, that amounted to approximately PS1.16 million (Sh380 million), a figure that would have placed Shah among Kenya's most wealthy individuals. On December 15, 2025, Judge Milne KC sentenced Shah to a total of eight and a half years' imprisonment, describing the prosecution's case as "a strong case, a compelling case which would have offended one's sense of justice if it had not been pursued." Shah did not attend his sentencing either, and a warrant was issued by the Crown Court at Southwark on 29 October 2025 ordering: "All constables are ordered to arrest the defendant Pritesh Shah, Date of birth 28-Dec-1972 of P.O Box, 46049-00100, Nairobi, Kenya, who, having been released on bail subject to a duty to surrender to the custody of the Crown Court, has failed to surrender as required and bring him forthwith before the Crown Court." According to multiple court documents in possession of The Standard, Shah, a British citizen born in Nairobi, resides in Nairobi and a bankruptcy notice lists his address as "c/o 8272/90, 23E Bendera Lane, Spring Valley, Westlands, Nairobi, Kenya." The prosecution's case summary states that "what is alleged in the indictment is a series of three frauds. Pritesh told each of the losers lies about his income, investments and other potential sources of money to repay them. He also used forged documents to secure lending and then told lies to the court dealing with his bankruptcy." According to court documents, Count One against Pritesh is fraud against a Ghanaian entrepreneur. "In March 2012, Pritesh borrowed $200,000 from the victim. Pritesh persuaded him to transfer money by pretending he would soon have the means to repay the loan by virtue of family wealth. This assertion was untrue. The only funds ever paid back to the victim ($70,000) were returned shortly after Pritesh Shah fraudulently obtained a $1.2m loan from Rossfield Limited." The second count in the court documents is fraud against Rossfield Limited The judgement states that between November 1, 2012 and October 31, 2018, Pritesh Shah "dishonestly and intending thereby to make a gain for himself or another or to cause loss to another, made representations to an investment adviser which were and which he knew were or might be untrue or misleading, namely that he intended to, and/or would have the means to repay a loan of $1,200,000 advanced by Rossfield Limited to him. The loan was reduced to a written contract. It was due to be repaid in SIX weeks." A former manager who used to supervise Shah testified in court that his remuneration "was in the region of PS70,000 with a modest bonus. It would in no way have funded the repayment of a $1.2m loan. Pritesh never repaid this loan." The prosecution summary reads: "The course of lies told by Pritesh as to the imminence of repayment is very significant. He told sophisticated lies over the telephone and email on no fewer than six consecutive occasions, including the provision of false swift codes and lies about payment orders to banks." One email from Pritesh Shah to Rossfield Limited's representatives, dated May 15, 2014, at 10:01, states: "Note: funds were sent on Monday this week, May 12, and the value date is Weds 14th. Please can you check and revert? I will find you swift details as soon as I receive these." The third count in the judgment is fraud against a Swiss-based financier. The indictment states that between April 1, 2015 and September 31, 2016, Pritesh Shah "Pritesh borrowed $109,000 from Inversiones Latinas Internationales. It was borrowed on the basis that it was to be repaid in a matter of weeks with fixed $11,000 interest. Pritesh did not negotiate on the point of this apparently excessive interest, perhaps because he had no intention of paying it back in any event." With creditors on his tail, Pritesh Shah was declared bankrupt on July 11, 2017. The bankruptcy order, issued by the High Court of Justice, states: "It is ordered that Pritesh Ashok Kumar Jetha Shah of Flat 1, The Limes, Warren Lane, Stanmore, HA7 4FB, England, Occupation unknown, lately trading at Capital Old Partners at Old Park Lane, London W1K 1LB with others, be adjudged bankrupt." A subsequent notice from the joint trustees, Stephen Cork and Anthony Cork of Cork Gully LLP, lists the debtor's address as "c/o 8272/90, 23E Bendera Lane, Spring Valley, Westlands, Nairobi, Kenya. Date of Birth: 28 December 1972. The Joint Trustees are prepared to pay a reward for information that proves useful in the recovery of the Debtor's assets." In a separate proceeding before the High Court of Kenya at Nairobi, dated April 3, 2024, ATU General Trust (BVI) Limited against Surelekha Shah and Pritesh Shah. The plaint reads: "The Plaintiff avers that it had been contracted by the Defendants' family through the late Ashok Kumar Bharmal Shah, to provide fiduciary and corporate management services to the Defendants' family businesses since 2015." Following the death of Ashok Kumar Bharmal Shah in 2018, the plaintiff continues, the defendants "approached the plaintiff with a request to restructure and reorganise the family's estate planning structures." On August 8 2019, "the parties discussed and agreed upon the proposed restructuring plan and fee proposal." The plaintiff states that on November 12 and 13, 2019, "Pritesh Shah approved the restructuring plan and the fee proposal upon which the Plaintiff proceeded to diligently provide the restructuring services as per the approved plans. The Defendants, however, failed to settle the Plaintiff's agreed-upon fees despite requests and follow-ups. The outstanding fees stood at USD 255,635.00 as of December 31, 2021. Following a demand notice dated April 4 2022, "the Defendants, through various correspondences, admitted their indebtedness to the tune of USD 207,480.00 and proposed to settle the same in the instalments" USD 10,000 on April 25, 2022 and USD 10,000 on May 16, 2022, among others. "The Plaintiff, out of good faith and in the interest of resolving the matter, agreed with the Defendants' proposal to settle the outstanding amount by way of instalments," reads the court documents. As of November 2022, the Defendants had only paid five installments totaling to USD 50,000, leaving a balance of USD 157,480.00, which remains unpaid to date. The prosecution summary states that "the family, and other members of that community, operate a business, traditionally, based on trust. The court documents additionally name Vijay Shah and Dilip Shah as uncles of Pritesh Shah, also based in Nairobi and part of the Oshwal community. The note states that Vijay Shah "has recently been appointed as a trustee of the Oshwal community" and that Pritesh Shah is "husband to Simone Karin Barrelet with two young children at a private prep school in Nairobi. The judgment concludes by stating, "Taken together, the above conduct indicates that a series of very substantial loans were obtained on the pretence that funds needed to repay the loans were soon to be available. Lies were told about remuneration from employment or due from debtors. Documents, both paper and electronic, were forged to trick creditors into thinking they would be repaid. There is a formidable case of fraud, forgery and perverting the course of justice against Pritesh." It also states: "It is highly likely that the witnesses that form part of this case are neither the first nor the last victims to lose significant sums as a result of Pritesh's dishonest conduct." Tamlyn Edmonds of Edmonds Marshall McMahon, the law firm that led the private prosecution in London, said: "Pritesh Ashok Kumar Jetha Shah defrauded multiple victims of millions of dollars, forged documents, lied under oath, and then fled the jurisdiction rather than face justice. A UK jury convicted him unanimously on every count. The fact that he is understood to be living openly in Nairobi should concern anyone doing business with him or around him. We urge anyone with relevant information to make contact." The joint trustees, Cork Gully LLP, have stated that they "are prepared to pay a reward for information that proves useful in recovery of the Debtor's assets." Creditors and interested parties are invited to contact Alexander Zografakis."

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