Former Devolution Permanent Secretary Peter MangitiNational Youth Service boss Nelson Githinji and businessman Benson Gethi at Milimani law court on Tuesday February 16, 2016.
BY SAM ALFAN
Ten suspects of the Sh791 million National Youth Service scandal skipped court on Friday, failing to take plea yet again.
The suspects include the alleged architects businessman Ben Gethi and former Devolution Permanent Secretary Peter Mangiti
They did not turn up at Nairobi Magistrate courts despite summons requiring them to appear and answer to charges of money laundering.
A team of lawyers representing the suspects in the pending case had protested that their clients had not been “properly served with the court summons”.
In her ruling, Ms Joyce Gandani said the suspects should be served afresh personally or through the media.
“I am not satisfied with the manner in which the suspects were served, and I hereby direct that the prosecution serves them afresh,” she said.
The magistrate directed that if the suspects “cannot be served individually, the Director of Public Prosecutions should publish the summons in two local dailies with a national reach”.
Two lawyers were served in court after they told the court that they would be representing two of the suspects.
Mr Ham Kiplagat, who represents Mr Anthony Gethi, informed the court that his client was in hospital and could not make it to court. Mr Paul Amuga, for Mr Samuel Mudanyi, was also given the summons in court.
Other lawyers asked that the suspects be served “personally.”
Prosecutor Eddy Kadebe told the court that the investigating officer was having trouble reaching the suspects to serve them with the summons.
Their lawyers told senior resident magistrate Gandani that their clients’ had not yet received summons over the Sh791 million scandals.
Gandani directed the Director of Public Prosecutions to serve the accused through newspapers saying they were not properly served. She said the case will be mentioned on April 14.
The suspects include Jedidah Wangui, Nairobi businesswoman cum hairdresser Josephine Kabura, John Kago, a driver at KCB and Samwel Wachenje alias Sam Mwadim.
Others are Anthony Kihara, Paul Gachoka, John Vandamme, Martin Wanjohi and lawyer Patrick Ogola.
10 suspects linked to the loss of Sh791 Million National Youth Service (NYS) money were ordered to appear in court to plead to money laundering charges
Justice Joseph Onguto in his ruling said it was clear to the court that the 10 suspects had not convinced the court that orders stopping one of the suspects, Patrick Ogolla should be extended to all of them.
“I wish to reiterate that the mere fact that persons are jointly charged with the same offence an order of stay in judicial review must not necessarily apply to them in equal measure,” Justice Onguto ruled.
The court had been told that Ogolla a lawyer approached the high court and successfully obtained an order suspending his prosecution.
The major NYS scandal architects Ben Gethi and his mother Charity Wangui Gethi have asked the high court to quash a decision by the Director of Public Prosecution preferring money laundering charges against them.
In a separate but similar application, mother and son want the DPP restrained from prosecuting or proceeding with their prosecution on offences of money laundering until their applications are heard.
The two further want an order prohibiting the chief magistrates court from hearing or in any way entertaining the money laundering case against them until a finding has been reached in another NYS criminal case where Ben Gethi is a co-accused.
Gethi and his mother were summoned together with other suspects to answer to Money laundering charges on 18 March.
According to Gethi, the alleged theft of the Sh791 million from NYS is a subject matter of proceedings in a criminal case where he is accused number three and which is yet to be heard and determined.
“DPP has not established through a due process that the said monies were proceeds of any crime. I do not believe he has any constitutional authority to make a finding that an offence of money laundering has been committed without such offense having been proved before any court,” said Gethi in court documents.
The two also claim the decision to charge them with money laundering was made maliciously and in bad faith since the issue has attracted general public interest.
“As a result of the respondents’ action stated above, I have already been subjected to scurrilous and defamatory allegations in national media and has had my reputation and standing irreversibly damaged,” said Gethi.
Mother and son say they will suffer immense and irreparable damage if they are compelled to take plea on March 18.
Justice Onguto directed them to file and serve the respondents for a hearing on Monday next week for the hearing.
