BY SAM ALFAN.
A businesswoman alleged to be a drug dealer has denied her property being sought by Assets Recovery Agency are proceeds of crime.
In her reply to the agency application seeking to freeze her six motor vehicles suspected to be bought from proceeds crime, Rose Monyani Musanda told High Court Anti-Corruption court that she bought the vehicles from a loan from Sadian Bank and loan is financed by the same bank.
This comes after early this month the high Court issued orders preserving over Sh1.7 million held in the accounts belonging to businesswoman Rose Monyani Musanda, which is suspected to be proceeds of crime.
Justice John Onyiego of Anti-Corruption division also prohibited Monyani from transferring or selling six motor vehicles KCM 465 X Toyota Axio, KCR 297A Isuzu Bus Coach, KBT 692W Isuzu Bus coach, KCC 646D Isuzu bus coach, KBY 184H Isuzu bus coach, KCH 179N bus coach, pending the hearing of the case by Assets Recovery Agency.
“A preservation order is hereby granted prohibiting Rose Monyani Musanda and her agents or representatives from transacting, withdrawing, transferring, using and any other dealings in respect of funds held in two accounts held at Sidian Bank and Diamond Trust Bank Madina mall branch belonging to Rose Monyani Musanda,” ruled Judge Onyiego.
Documents filed in court show that Sh 1,462,963.47 s being held at Sidian Bank Kangemi Branch while another Sh325,712.45 is being held at Diamond Trust Bank, Madina mall branch under her name.
The court further directed her to surrender the motor vehicles to Directorate of Criminal Investigation headquarters and original logbooks with immediate effect within seven days.
The Director General of National Transport and Safety Authority was also ordered to register a caveat against the records of each of the motor vehicle. The order should be gazetted within 21 days, the court ruled.
Masanda told the court that the agency took all her motor vehicles on October 9, claiming the said motor vehicles were proceeds of crime.
She said the motor vehicles will be wasted at the Agency yard without reason and at the same time submit her through untold hardship of paying loan from unknown source with the attendant risks of the same being repossessed.
She said the property (vehicles) are in no way criminally obtained and are traceable at Sadian Bank.
She urged the court to set aside the orders issued preserving her three Isuzu matatu buses.
She told the court she started with one through assets financing which vehicle’s repayment and saving led to purchase other vehicles.
“I used to own a property in Trans-Nzoia County being plot No. 35 which I sold in the year 2008 to Eboso and used the proceeds or consideration of the said property as my startup capital”, said Musanda.
She added that she had made some savings from selling second hand clothes which enabled her an opportunity to save and apply the effect with business precision.
She added that she applied the proceeds and sought for asset financing from the Nyeri Motors services limited who offered her one of their vehicles on loan which i fully repaid which she repaid.
According to her, the loan was Kshs. 3,080,016 and she had managed to raise 1.5 million as a deposit for assets financing from the savings. The said bus matatu was operating under Star bus sacco before it was transferred to Latema sacco for management.
She added that she financed the loan of another 33 seater Matatu from equity bank for 4.3 million.
Masunda said the decision by the agency og taking away her property deprives her basic and constitutional right of owning property and engaging of any lawful trade of choice.
ARA filed the application through Senior State Counsel Mohammed Adow seeking to preserve the money belonging to businesswoman, who had been charged with trafficking in narcotic drugs.
In the petition, the agency told the court that there is imminent danger that Monyani might dispose, transfer and dissipate the said assets as there are no orders currently preserving the assets in the issue.
Monyani was arrested on June 14, this year at Kinoo in Kiambu County and appeared before JKIA court and denied charges of trafficking Narcotics drugs.
Assets Recovery commenced investigations to recover proceeds of crime accrued by the businesswoman through the illegitimate trafficking and trading of narcotic drugs.
During the arrest, a search was conducted at her residence and total of 796.66 grams of heroin were recovered from her house situated at Kinoo in Kiambu.
