Rigathi Gachagua dealt blow after court declines to summon investigator

 

Mathira MP Rigathi Gachagua speaks during the funeral service the late Richard Kaguchia father to Nyeri county assembly speaker John Kaguchia at Kiuu Primary School in Mukurwe-ini, Nyeri County, September 29, 2021. [Mose Sammy, Standard]

Mathira MP Rigathi Gachagua suffered a setback after a judge dismissed his application to cross-examine an investigator who uncovered suspicious transactions in his accounts totalling Sh19 billion.

High Court Judge Esther Maina ruled the MP has not demonstrated any special circumstances that would warrant the court to summon the officer attached to the Asset Recovery Agency (ARA) to be questioned by his lawyers.

“There is no basis to call the investigating officer to be cross-examined because whether he is called or not, that will not change what he has already submitted in his affidavit,” ruled Justice Maina.

The State agency is pursuing Gachagua to recover Sh202 million stashed in his bank accounts on allegations that the money was part of the billions of shillings he acquired through money laundering and corrupt practices.

According to ARA, Gachagua’s three personal accounts conducted a series of suspicious debit transactions amounting to Sh7.3 billion and a total credit of Sh12.5 billion between 2013 and 2020, which they believe were proceeds of crime.

Out of the huge bank transactions, the agency claimed the MP and his business associate Anne Kimemia, trading as Jenne Enterprises Ltd, cannot explain how they acquired the Sh202 million, which should be forfeited to the State.

One of the accounts registered in Gachagua’s name at Rafiki Micro Finance Bank has Sh165 million, the second account also at Rafiki has Sh35 million, the third account has Sh773,228 while the fourth account under the name of Jenne Enterprises has Sh1.1 million.