Kenya Ports Authority General manager (Finance) Patrick Nyoike and Clerical Officer – Isaac Obunga, have been freed on KSh2million cash bail after denying corruption charges against them.
The two appeared before Mombasa Chief Magistrate Edna Nyaloti on Monday after being arrested on Sunday following a directive by the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Noordin Hajji ordered for their arrest, saying he was satisfied with the investigations by Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission into irregular payments amounting to KSh214 million.
Investigators unearthed the multi-million scandal in which Nyoike is said to have used his office to confer the funds to a company associated with his wife and brother.
“Indeed, Patrick Wambugu Nyoike facilitated Nyali Capital Limited’s micro finance business to finance the KPA suppliers, Local Purchase Order (LPOs) and Local Service Orders (LSOs) and thereafter used the KPA system to have the principal and the interest from the said suppliers remitted to Nyali Capital Limited’s account by the KPA,” Hajji said in a statement on Sunday.
His wife, Jacinta Wanjiku Wambugu, is the company’s General Manager while his brother Alfred Hinga Nyoike is a director.
EACC further reported that Obunga allegedly identified the company as a vendor in the KPA vendor portal.
“This clearly demonstrates a conflict of interest on the part of Patrick Wambugu Nyoike, the General Manager Finance at KPA,” the statement adds.
Nyoike’s brother Alfred and the company’s other director Peter Ndichu Kinyanjui are still at large and are being pursued by detectives.
The suspects have been charged with abuse of office, conspiracy to commit an offence of corruption, failure to disclose a private interest to his principal and dealing with suspect property.
