EACC arrests nine senior Treasury officials in Ksh 1.57B scandal
EACC arrests nine senior Treasury officials in Ksh 1.57B scandal
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has arrested nine suspects, including two senior National Treasury officials, over the alleged embezzlement and fraudulent disbursement of Ksh1.57 billion under the Programme for Rural Outreach of Financial Innovations and Technologies (PROFIT).
The suspects include the PROFIT Programme Coordinator, the Head of the Accounting Unit at the Treasury and a Senior Accountant at the Treasury, alongside six business owners.
“The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has arrested nine (9) suspects in connection with the alleged embezzlement and fraudulent disbursement of Ksh1,569,582,338.20 under the PROFIT Programme, implemented by the National Treasury with funding from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD),” the commission confirmed.
According to the EACC, the money was paid to 23 private entities, 15 business names and eight companies for goods and services that were allegedly never supplied or rendered.
The anti-graft agency further established that programme officials allegedly used false and forged documents to account for the funds and opened an unauthorised bank account in the name of the PROFIT Programme.
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EACC said Ksh175 million was deposited into the unauthorised account and subsequently laundered and embezzled, with a substantial portion of the money allegedly withdrawn in cash.
“Investigators also established financial links between programme officials and some of the private entities that received the funds,” the commission said, adding that the transactions appeared to contravene public financial management and accountability requirements.
The PROFIT Programme was established to facilitate small-scale farmers’ access to affordable financing and was implemented between the 2013/2014 and 2023/2024 financial years, according to the EACC.
Following the conclusion of its investigations, the commission forwarded the inquiry file to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), who approved the prosecution of 20 public officials, companies and company directors.
The suspects face charges including unlawful acquisition of public property, abuse of office, money laundering, acquisition of proceeds of crime and uttering false documents, among other offences.
They are expected to be arraigned before the Milimani Law Courts on Wednesday, August 19, this year.
The anti-graft agency has directed 11 additional suspects, including the programme accountant and several business owners and company directors, to immediately present themselves at the commission’s Integrity Centre in Nairobi or the nearest EACC office for processing.
Meanwhile, the commission said it will pursue the recovery and forfeiture of public funds and assets established to have been acquired through corrupt conduct or other unlawful means, as part of efforts to hold those responsible for the alleged loss accountable.
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