Joyce Akinyi empire crumbles: How international drug ring was finally busted

Joyce Akinyi at the Milimani Law Courts where she was charged with assaulting Scola Namunyu in November 2014. [File, Standard] A series of text messages, audio recordings, and photos were presented as evidence, leading the court to sentence drug queen Joyce Akinyi to 25 years in prison for trafficking heroin worth Sh5 million. Akinyi's partner, Paulin Kalala from the Democratic Republic of Congo, and their accomplice, Peres Anyango, were sentenced to 10 and 25 years, respectively. Akinyi's sister revealed that she had known Kalala for over seven months and that the two had been dating for more than two months. Akinyi and Kalala were each fined Sh9 million, while Anyango faced a Sh8 million fine. However, Anyango was convicted and sentenced in absentia after she skipped court and could not be located. An active warrant for her arrest remains at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA). Senior Principal Magistrate Njeri Thuku noted that Anyango might be using an alias since she was found with a fake DRC passport. Akinyi was also found to have two passports from the DRC. Magistrate Thuku ordered that both passports be returned to the country. According to the prosecution, a phone found in Anyango's bag contained crucial evidence regarding how the two women ran their operations. Magistrate Thuku noted that at the time of their arrest, the two women were at the top of the drug trafficking chain. "Essentially, they were drug barons, running their own enterprise with specific markets, suppliers, and regular customers," she said. Cover up She added that Akinyi used the Deep West hotel as a cover for the drug-running operation. "It served as a front to justify the large sums of money flowing into her accounts." The Magistrate noted that Kalala was not just a bystander caught in the complex web of drug trafficking, but an active participant in the vice. He was Akinyi's lover, and they had been partners for more than two months, according to testimony from Akinyi's sister. When police raided Akinyi's office at Deep West, they found her with Kalala, while Anyango was in a different room. Anyango's bag contained the drugs, along with a phone that would become crucial evidence against the three. Upon further investigation, authorities uncovered images, audio, and text messages indicating that Anyango had travelled to Uganda, where they suspected she was set to deliver the drugs. According to the police, the phone also provided a link to international trafficking operations, and Magistrate Thuku noted that, at the time of their arrest, the trio was leading these global trafficking rings. They were reportedly recruiting young men and women-often including close relatives-as mules for drug deliveries. Drug mules Some of the drugs were delivered to European and Asian countries, and the two allegedly required the mules to keep them updated on their movements at all times. Once the drop-offs were made, the mules were instructed to signal them. "They were actively recruiting individuals, keeping track of them from the moment they left Kenya until the drugs were safely delivered," said the Magistrate. Deep West was reportedly the headquarters of their operations. As Akinyi rose through the ranks of drug trafficking in the country, police claimed that she directed her juniors to always communicate via word of mouth. The hotel also served as a convenient cover to launder the illicit drug money, with Akinyi claiming in another case that it brought in Sh1 million daily. After her arrest, the Assets Recovery Agency (ARA) filed a case to seize two vehicles valued at Sh20 million, alleging they were proceeds of crime. In her defense, Akinyi argued that she had been in the real estate business since 2004, earning a substantial income, which explained the continued deposits in her accounts. ARA stated that Akinyi had been depositing large sums of money in tranches below Sh1 million to avoid detection by the Central Bank. She claimed that the hotel and her other properties were worth over Sh500 million. Justice Esther Maina, however, was unconvinced by her explanation and ordered the forfeiture of the two vehicles to the state. In their plea for mercy during sentencing, Akinyi and Kalala presented what they hoped would be tickets to freedom or a lighter sentence. Kalala claimed that his father had passed away on January 2, 2024, while he was in jail. He stated that he came from a Christian family, was the second-born, and the sole breadwinner. He painted a picture of a suffering family due to his incarceration, mentioning that his children had dropped out of school because they could not afford fees. He expressed remorse and requested to serve his sentence in the DRC. The queen in Akinyi emerged in the probation report, which painted her as unremorseful about the crime and bitter about the outcome of the case. Shortly after being sentenced to 25 years in prison, she accused police of taking items from her.

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