The DCI through the office of the director of public prosecutions today arraigned in court eight suspects among them an officer from the ministry of lands believed to be part of a syndicate frustrating members of the public through land fraud.
The DCI in a miscellaneous application asked court to grant them 14 days detention order against the suspects to conclude investigations before forwarding the file to the DPP for further directions.
The suspects are Emanuel Mutuku Matheka an officer working at the ministry of lands at Ardhi House, Dan Adero Okoth, Nicholas Makuna Muyela, Livingstone Ambayi, Kennedy Mulatya, Paul Muigai, Leonard Clifford who works at the government press and Patrice Josiah.
According to the DCI, the suspects are being investigated for the offence of conspiracy to defraud, forgery, making false documents, obtaining registration by false pretences, abuse of office and fraud.
The court heard that after the suspects were arrested, upon search DCI officers recovered forged land certificates, leases, title deeds, transfer of interest in land, letters of allotments and forgery stamps.
The DCI further told court that the said stamps had names of persons who did not bear any of the suspect’s name.
The application further indicated that the recovered stamps bear imprinted names of the state department for lands and physical planning, land registrar, land administrators, Advocates, County government of Kiambu and Nakuru stamp duty and none of the suspects is known to bear such designations.
The DCI therefore urged the court to allow the application to detain the suspects for 14 days to conclude their investigations.
The defence faulted the application saying that the prosecution has not proved that the suspects are a flight risk hence the court should release them on reasonable bond terms.
Advocate Felix for the defence told the court that the entire motion seeking detention of the suspects is arbitrary.
He said that there was no evidence placed before the court to prove that the suspects can interfere with the investigations hence the application seeking the 14 days detention order is short of substance.
The court will rule on the detention order application tomorrow Wednesday 2 April, 2025.
Meanwhile the suspects have been remanded at Kilimani police station.
