Police officer arrested for extorting Sh200,000 from Rotich’s driver

Former Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich at a past function. His driver was allegedly extorted Sh200,000 by a police officer. (File, Standard)

Two police officers are being investigated for allegedly extorting Sh200,000 from a driver attached to former Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich. The officers lied that they were investigating the Arror and Kimwarer dams’ scandal.

The driver was picked from Treasury Building on Monday, the day his boss was arrested by the officers who informed him that he was under probe.

According to police, the driver was forced to part with Sh200,000 to secure his release from the officers attached to Kamukunji Police Station.

When the officers arrived at Treasury, they asked the driver to accompany them saying he was under probe.

The officers asked for Sh300,000 bribe to release the driver but he managed to raise Sh200,000.

The driver went and reported the matter at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) Police Station.

On Wednesday, the same officers went back to Treasury and arrested a friend to the driver who had gone there for a visit on allegations of forgery.

According to police, the officers demanded a bribe of Sh100,000 before they could release the friend and later drove with him to a structure near Kamukunji Police Station.

It was then that the driver rushed to KICC to report the matter again. In the meantime, the arrested man was in touch with the driver and led him to where he had been detained.

The driver got a police team from KICC Police Station that managed to arrest one of the officers while the second one escaped.

The detained man was later rescued.

A senior officer revealed investigations into the matter are ongoing.

Rotich and Principal Secretary Kamau Thugge were on Tuesday night released after posting their cash bails. 

The two were freed alongside Ministry of East African Community Principal Secretary Susan Jemtai Koech as well as National Environment Management Authority (NEMA) boss Geoffrey Wahungu.

CS Rotich and PS Thugge had earlier appeared before a Nairobi court where they were released on Sh50 million bond with one surety of a similar amount or Sh15 million cash bail after being charged over the multi-billion Arror and Kimwarer dams scandal.

The officials were among more than a dozen people who were arrested on Monday and charged on Tuesday. Rotich and Thugge were picked up from Treasury Building by police who took them to the Directorate of Criminal Investigation headquarters for processing.

It was long after their arrest that the driver was approached by the other two officers who were pretending to investigate the matter.