Jersey writes to Kenya over Gichuru millions
Attorney-General Githu Muigai. He has been invited by the Public Accounts Committee to find out whether the payment to M/s Afrison Export Ltd and Huelands Ltd over two financial years was proper. PHOTO | GERALD ANDERSON | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- The request follows a ruling by the Royal Court of Jersey which ordered the seizure of the millions hidden in the offshore account belonging to Windward Trading Ltd, after the company pleaded guilty to four counts of money laundering.
Authorities in a UK Island have contacted the Kenya government over a legal framework to repatriate Sh520 million hidden in the state by former Cabinet minister Chris Okemo and former Kenya Power Managing Director Samuel Gichuru.
Attorney-General Prof Githu Muigai confirmed on Saturday that his office was in contact with authorities in Jersey Island to draw an asset sharing agreement in order to repatriate the funds to Kenya.
“We have received a letter from them and we are looking at it,” he stated but refused to divulge further details saying the matter was sensitive.
The request follows a ruling by the Royal Court of Jersey which ordered the seizure of the millions hidden in the offshore account belonging to Windward Trading Ltd, after the company pleaded guilty to four counts of money laundering.
The company, according to court records, admitted to laundering proceeds of crime between July 29, 1999 and October 19, 2001.
Windward was created in the 1980s by Mr Gichuru to receive kickbacks for the award of tenders to foreign firms.
The funds were usually disguised as consultancy fees or commissions.
Mr Okemo has also been named as a beneficiary of bribes, according to court papers, and is also wanted in Jersey on money laundering and fraud charges.
Jersey Attorney-General Robert MacRae said the decision by the court will not dampen his country’s pursuit to extradite the two.
He said he would consult Kenyan authorities on how to return the money.
Indicted in July 2011 by the Jersey authorities, the two have been fighting legal battles in Kenya to stop their extradition.
