Fraud case against ex-magistrate adjourned
The hearing of a case in which former magistrate Abdulkadir Elkindy has been charged alongside eight others with conspiracy to defraud Miwani Sugar Company of its multibillion shillings property has been adjourned.
Defence lawyer Wesley Gichaba made an application for the matter to be adjourned until Monday after the lead counsel for the accused Richard Onsongo failed to appear in court.
Mr Gichaba told the court that Mr Osongo was in Lodwar to represent Kisumu Judiciary in Court Users Committee and that he did not manage to catch a flight on time to be available for proceedings.
Principal Magistrate Julius Ng’arng’ar on Friday directed that the case resumes on October 22 at 9am, with the two remaining witnesses — Mr Enoch Nguthu and Mr Stanley Miriti who are former anti-corruption officers who investigated the matter taking to the stand.
The eight accused are the former magistrate Mr Abdulkadir Elkindy, Mr Sukwinder Sigh Chatte, Mr Ian Gakoi Mawa, Mr Odongo Philips Katiba, Mr Moses Nyaburo Osewe, Mr Kefa Lumumba Atunga, Mr Epainto Apono Okoyo and Crossley Holdings Ltd.
Mr Elkindly is also facing another charge of abuse of office where it is claimed he used his position as deputy registrar then, to issue a notification that an order had been issued by High court for the sale of the property.
They are alleged to have committed the crime between 2007 and 2008.
High Court judge Olga Sewe whose signature appeared in the document that facilitated the transfer of the Sh 2.3billion belonging to Miwani Sugar Company had earlier denied signing them.
Justice Sewe told the Kisumu Magistrate Court in April this year that her details were forged to authenticate court documents that facilitated the transfer of the piece of land.
“I am not the person who signed the document. It has several anomalies including printings which indicate that it was signed in the year 2000 and not 1993 as claimed,” said Justice Sewe in April, with Mr Onsongo putting her to task, to explain why she claimed the ‘forged’ signature was hers yet it didn’t bear the name of the signatory.
Another witness, Mr Paul Ombaja who is a judicial officer also denied any knowledge of a case file involving the case existing in 1993 as claimed by Mr Elkindy.
“We carried out a search but did not find that case in the court’s register, we were unable to trace it because there was no register,” said Ombaja in April this year.
