Five MTRH employees freed in fraud case

The employees were accused of defrauding the hospital Sh11.2 million in 2014. [Standard]

Five former employees of Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH), who were accused of defrauding the hospital Sh11.2 million in 2014, have been acquitted.

The five: Jonathan Kiplimo (Revenue Clerk), Rueben Kipkoech (Clerical Officer), Divinah Chepkemboi (Accounts assistant), and Emily Chebet (Records Clerk) and Perez Jepketer (Accounts Clerk) were acquitted by Eldoret Chief Magistrate Charles Obulutsa.

A witness, Anne Nafula, who was an internal auditor at MTRH, told the court that a query had been raised about a patient’s bill when the receipt showed Sh10,000 had been paid by him, while the accounts system showed he had paid Sh5,000.

Charles Wanjema, who was contracted by the MTRH to install the financial system in 2012, told the court that he was called in 2015 to conduct an audit of the billing and revenue part of the system.

He said he prepared a report which showed that revenue officers collected money from patients and altered receipts.

In their defence the accused persons told the court that they had surrendered all the money they had collected and there was no evidence in the system to prove otherwise.

They said the system had not been certified as fit to use, and the auditors could not fully rely on it.

They argued that the prosecution failed to produce the cyber-crimes unit audit report that had been commissioned following the alleged fraud, which could have easily vindicated them.

Mr Obulutsa agreed with them that the financial system audit alone could not be used to prove the crime.

“The system has been discredited. It is like a mousetrap which instead of catching mice, only snaps the fingers of the owner of the house,” said Obulutsa.

“The accused persons are given benefit of doubt and are acquitted.