BY SAM ALFAN.
A judge has allowed the preservation of more than Sh35 million suspected to be proceeds of crime.
Justice Nixon Sifuna ordered the preservation of the funds belonging to EIS Afrika Group Ltd, following an application by Assets Recovery Agency (ARA).
The agency submitted that the funds deposited at an account at I&M Bank could be part of money laundering.
“That a preservation order be and is hereby issued prohibiting the Respondent, its employees, agents, servants or any other persons acting on its behalf from transacting, withdrawing, transferring and or dealing in any manner whatsoever in respect of funds held in the following account,” said Justice Sifuna.
The $274,369 held at a bank account at I&M Bank in the name of EIS Afrika Group Ltd.
ARA told the court that it received information that the company was involved in money laundering schemes.
“That pursuant to the information, the agency opened an inquiry file No. 20 of 2024 to investigate and subsequent applied for and was issued with warrants to investigate the suspect accounts,” the agency said.
Further, preliminary investigations established that the company executed a scheme of money laundering designed to conceal, disguise the nature and source as well the movement of the illicit funds.
The agency said there are reasonable grounds to believe that the suspect bank account is used as conduits of money laundering in an effort to conceal and disguise the source of the funds.
“That there are no orders currently preserving the funds in issue and there is imminent danger the respondent shall dispose, transfer and dissipate the said funds unless this honourable court issues preservation orders as prayed,” the agency submitted.
The freeze will remain in force for 90 days.
