Six charged over illegal sugar imports out on bail

Two Kebs officials, a port health officer and three directors of companies accused of releasing substandard sugar into the Kenyan market have been granted bail on August 20, 2018. PHOTO | WACHIRA MWANGI | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Four of the suspects have been granted a Sh1.5m bond or Sh500,000 cash bail.
  • Court also lifted warrant of arrest issued against Mr Mohamed and Mr Hassan who presented themselves in court after the same was issued last week.

  • The six are accused of releasing substandard brown sugar from Egypt into the market.

Two Kenya Bureau of Standards (Kebs) officials, Kilindini port health officer and three directors of two companies involved in the importation of substandard sugar into the country have been granted bail.

The six are accused of releasing 10,000 bags of substandard sugar packed in 50 kilogram bags into the market. 

Kebs inspection manager Samuel Onjolo, inspection officer Daniel Samuel Musta, port health officer Peter Mwadziwe and Air Menzies International director Ali Abdi Mohamed were released on Sh1.5 million bond with an alternative of Sh500,000 cash bail each.

Directors of Flora Bakers Ltd Hassan Abdi Mohamed and Abdullahi Abdi Mohamed, on the other hand, have been released on a Sh500,000 bond each with one surety of a similar amount or an alternative cash bail of the same amount.

ARREST WARRANT

The court also lifted warrant of arrest issued against Mr Mohamed and Mr Hassan who presented themselves in court after the same was issued last week.

Mombasa Resident Magistrate Christine Ogweno barred the suspects from going to their work stations or near the port without the court’s permission.

She also directed that the suspects to deposit their passports in court as well as present themselves at DCIO Mombasa once a week.

They have also been barred from communicating or interfering with witnesses.

The magistrate reviewed the bond terms from Sh2million earlier given to Sh1.5million after the suspects complained the terms were stringent.

THE CHARGES

The six have been charged with willful disobedience of statutory duty contrary to section 130 of the penal code.

They are accused, jointly with others not before court, of wilfully causing to be released to the public 10,000 bags of Egyptian brown sugar that failed to comply with the requirements of Kenya standards.

Mr Onjolo, Musta and Mwadziwe are additionally charged with abuse of office, where they are accused of unlawfully authorising the release of the substandard brown sugar with moisture content and water insoluble matter to Flora Bakers, both exceeding the set standards which was prejudicial to the public health and safety.

The three are further charged with breach of trust, since as inspection manager and officer and health officer at the port, unlawfully authorised the release of the contraband sugar to the Flora Bakers, affecting the standard of health of the public.

Mr Onjolo and Mr Musta are further accused of entering into an agreement permitting release of contaminated goods into the Kenyan market.

The prosecution said the suspects entered into agreement with Air Menzies International to permit the release of the cargo into the country.

Mr Mwadziwe is further charged with wilfully disobeyed statutory duty by failing to ensure full compliance of Section 30(11) of the Food, Drugs and Chemical Substances Act by releasing the goods before obtaining a certificate of the results of the analysis of the samples taken from the said bags of sugar from the Government Chemist.

Flora Bakers is said to have imported the contaminated sugar while Air Menzies International cleared the sugar when it arrived from Egypt before being stored at Boss Freight Container Station at the Mombasa port.

The suspects denied the offence they are alleged to have committed between June 28 and July 11, this year in Mombasa.

The case will be heard on September 4.