The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission has been given 90 days to respond to a case in which the agency is seeking Sh1.2 billion from a Lands ministry official.
The High Court has already frozen the assets of Nicholas Owino, a senior assistant director for valuation at the Ministry of Lands, worth Sh1, 206,851,274.
The orders by Justice Esther Maina came after the EACC filed a recovery suit on June 15, 2022, and an injunction application shortly after.
The defendant was also ordered by the court to deliver vehicles registered to his wife, as well as their logbooks, to the EACC within seven days.
EACC filed a lawsuit against Owino, his wife Violet Terry Muthoni, his brother Richard Omondi, and two companies associated with them: Ternic Valier’s Limited and Ternic Enterprises Limited.
The agency wants the money returned to the government because it is suspected to be the proceeds of corruption.
According to the anti-graft agency, Owino has unaccounted for assets worth Sh1.2 billion in comparison to his legitimate salary of Sh6.3 million.
The assets include real estate, automobiles, and money held in bank accounts.
The total amount transacted is Sh497, 393,274 via banks and M-Pesa.
There are also Sh694, 670,000 in property and cars worth Sh10.5 million.
Among the vehicles are a BMW, a Volkswagen, and a Toyota Land Cruiser.
The commission requested that the court order an auction of all three cars.
When the matter came up for directions on Tuesday, Owino’s lawyers stated that they had provided EACC with the necessary affidavits.
However, the case could not proceed because lawyers acting on behalf of the anti-graft agency requested 90 days to go over the voluminous affidavits presented by Owino.
They claimed that the affidavits were served on them just hours before the court date.
Justice Maina granted the request and scheduled a new hearing for February 15.
The EACC filed the suit against Owino following an investigation into a report that the official amassed unexplained wealth while serving as a public officer from January 2003 to November 2018.
