Former Devolution Permanent Secretary Peter Mangiti National Youth Service boss Nelson Githinji and businessman Benson Gethi at Milimani law court on Tuesday February 16,2016.
BY SAM ALFAN.
High court has declined to bar Director of Public Prosecution from instituting criminal charges against two NYS scam suspects who are among 11 people summoned to plead to money laundering charges.
Justice Odunga declined to grant the orders but gave Paul Kinuthia Gachoka and John Hope Vandame 10 days leave to file a substantive motion.
The two have sued Director of Public Prosecution and Inspector General of Police.
They wanted the high court to quash Director of Public Prosecution decision to charge them.
They claim to be innocent persons and are being used to cover up for and divert public attention from the real culprits.
The two claims DPP in arriving at the decision to charge them, he relied on a report by the Banking Fraud Investigation Unit of the Directorate of Criminal Investigation, whose officers are now being investigated for covering NYS scam.
The suspects claim that DPP’s decision to institute criminal charges against them is improper exercise of discretion as the process is flawed for which there is ongoing investigations by EACC.
Through their lawyer Stephen Mwanza Gachie, they want an order prohibiting DPP and IG from arresting and prosecuting them over the said charge.
“DPP committed an error of facts by making an incorrect finding that the two applicants are culpable when the real culprits are still at large,” said their lawyer in court documents.
The two claim that DPP‘s decision to charge them was made in bad faith and out of malice and goes against the principles of natural justice.
“DPP has acted in a partial and biased manner in handling the matter by making a decision to prosecute the two applicants through flawed and improper investigations,” added the lawyer, Mwanza in court documents.
Gachoka and Vandame claim that the decision by DPP to prosecute then is completely misinformed and is only ment to expose them to public ridicule and humiliation.
The two states that the recently sworn affidavit by Josephine Kabura Irungu implicating former Devolution Cabinet Secretary Ann Waiguru in the NYS Scam, indicates that they were being made to take fall for the real culprits and the investigations were done purposely to shield certain individuals and victimize others.
Through their lawyer, the two claim that the decision to institute criminal proceedings against them was made in a blatant abuse of the massive prosecutorial powers conferred upon DPP.
Justice Odunga noted there was a case to answer and gave them 10 days leave to file a substantive motion.
The case will be heard on March 14.
