Renowned lawyer George Kithi of law firm of Kithi & Company Advocates is on the authorities radar over his role in the theft of Nairobi County funds, Kithi who represented Sonko in his graft case.
Sonko was charged on with fraudulent acquisition of public funds through the irregular award of tenders totaling Sh357 million a case that has dragged in courts since December 2019.
The Public Prosecutor accused Sonko of irregularly awarding tenders totaling Sh357.4 million out of which he and eight other City Hall officials accrued benefits.
Director of Public Prosecutions Noordin Haji said the accused persons, “facilitated and/or benefitted from the irregular procurement and payments amounting to Sh357, 390,299 million.”
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) through documents filed in court, revealed an intricate web of corruption at City Hall, with the governor at the centre allegedly receiving kickbacks amounting to Sh39 million from companies doing business with City Hall.
In the expose, four companies allegedly affiliated with the Governor’s close friends cumulatively diverted some Sh39 million to their related companies before the money ended up in the governor’s accounts.
During the period under investigation EACC reported that Hardi Enterprises received over Sh357 million, Amaco Insurance, linked to Deputy President William Ruto, received Sh158 million, Yiro Enterprises Ltd Sh103 million and Web Tribe Sh102 million.
Yiro and Hardi are among the 14 companies that are said to have been paid Sh524 million this year to collect garbage in the city. Amaco, since 2013, had a running contract to insure county government vehicles while Web Tribe, which operates as JamboPay, was until May this year providing e-payment revenue collection for the county.
EACC further revealed that Amaco sent Sh23.3 million to Arbab Auto Ltd, which in turn sent Mr Sonko Sh17 million during the period under investigation. Moreover, Yiro Enterprises Ltd and Web Tribe sent Sh14.1 million and Sh10 million respectively to ROG Securities Ltd. Out of this cumulated amounts, ROG sent Sh10.4 million to Mr Sonko.
Arbab and ROG Security Ltd are both owned by Anthony Otieno Ombok, alias Jamal, a Sonko ally who in 2018 was arrested in connection with assaulting Nairobi Central Business District Association (NCBDA) chair Timothy Muriuki in the full glare of cameras during a press conference.
Sources talking to Nairobi Exposed, now reveal that despite Kithi now not being on record lawyer for Sonko, he’s suspected of having been the conduit for siphoning money for Sonko who’s his longtime friend from the Nairobi County coffers. Lawyers have always been the space facilitators of corruption in public offices and easily clean dirty money.
We’re told that investigators have been combing his bank accounts and likely to get frozen in the likely event that he gets nailed. Kithi came to the surface and radar of the detectives following his well oiled political campaigns where he’s vying for the Kilifi Senatorial position. Investigators believe that part of the money siphoned from Nairobi county could be part of the finances of his campaigns.
Kithi is however not new to fraudulent deals allegations, previously, he was accused of being a conduit in a scheme by scrupulous individuals in a scheme to defraud commercial banks.
The lawyer was named among suspects who forged land documents to secure five loans worth Sh449 million from Commercial Bank of Africa.
Mr Kithi and his law firm of Kithi & Company Advocates are among 17 individuals and companies that the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) wanted prosecuted over grand forgery to secure five loans worth Sh449 million from the CBA.
The DCI report, detailed the forgery racket involving law firms, and unscrupulous businessmen that worked with internal staff to ship out the cash from the bank.
“It is evident that the directors of Ndonga Limited, Wardpa Holdings Limited and Kinjune Garden Limited, Commercial Bank of Africa Limited officials, M/s Khaemba and Advocates, the external advocates of CBA and the external valuers of CBA conspired to defraud Commercial Bank of Africa Sh449, 051,999 using forged documents,” the DCI said in the recommendation signed by Nairobi County Criminal Investigations officer Nicholas Kamwende.
Kithi and Company Advocates boss George Kithi is a very corrupt man.
A simple google search reveals a lot of scandals he has been involved in. But that is also a crux since most of the articles written about him by the media houses have been pulled down. (It is possible that Githeri media houses have been paid).
Because, despite him being mentioned in serious frauds, Citizen TV, K24 Tv, NTV and KTN continues to give him airtime. Nonesense!
Here is another shocker: His company’s website is also offline.
Before I share an anonymous tip on how the scandalous City Lawyer George Kithi scammed a client, please see below some of his crimes:
Below is the story of how Mr. Kithi recently scammed a client.
Kithi and Company Advocates have become a sham of the legal profession.
As per information given Kithi sought Kshs. 2 million from his client who he was handling purchase of an apartment for.
The client trusting the client-lawyer-relationship transferred Kshs. 2 million shillings as per the attached documents to Kithi and Company Advocates.
Since then it’s been a cat and mouse game for the non suspecting client.
The client reached out to his other partner in the firm, Mary chege who is also his wife working with Seven Seas Technology but was given dishonoured Cheques.
Kithi has been mentioned in several scandals including the Kilifi county fraud and the CBA Bank fraud that property was charged to several companies.
He’s been painting a lavish lifestyle driving big cars but this is not the case as the Range Rover was equally taken from a clients car yard and never paid for, only to be abandoned in the car yard after flying squad from DCI got involved.
A lot of unsuspecting Kenyans have lost money through his law firm. The law firm seems to be having challenges as its properties were recently advertised in the dailies to be auctioned.
These lawyers are able to beat the legal system and walk away with clients money and it’s about time the profession was better regulated to keep such thugs from unsuspecting citizens.
In a similar account where Kithi shortchanged a client, he was taken to court, Norah Buyaki Ratemo, a director of Avalange Trading Ltd, accused lawyer George Kithi of failing to repay Sh2.5M advanced to him in 2018.
As a client, Kithi had been acting for for her in various transactions.
The firm drafted a sale agreement for her property in Kajiado in 2012 which was successfully concluded.
Buyaki says she later approached the same law firm for purchase of an apartment at Peers Park but the transaction was never finalised as the lease period was shorter than desired.
“On July 2, 2018 the defendant, Kithi, called me and requested that since l had not identified a property yet and had money still lying in my company’s account, l lend him Sh2 million as he was expecting money from one of his clients,” Buyaki says.
Kithi promised to refund the money advanced to him in three days. He didn’t, and took the client in circle or ages leading to the suit.
“Despite demands made and notice of intention to sue, the defendant has failed, refused and neglected to settle the amount due and has over the year taken the plaintiff in circles.”
Kilifi County Theft
Investigators are also looking into his role in siphoning funds from Kilifi County where coincidentally, he’s Governor Amason Kingi’s lawyer. In a case that has had EACC in his radar. Kithi received Sh308M from the county.
The EACC has summoned Kilifi Governor Amason Kingi over the alleged purchase of 11 acres of bus park land at Sh308 million.
The commission began investigations into the purchase of the Mtwapa property for the Kilifi county bus park, after it emerged that the money was split and wired to 10 different entities.
Detectives wanted to know why the Kilifi government paid Sh28 million for each acre of the land, and the person who quoted the exorbitant price.
Initial investigations indicated the county paid Sh308,189,651 to persons identified as George Kithi and Gilbert Olum. Shortly after Sh308,000,000 was transferred to Future Link Limited’s bank accounts.l in the intricate web.
As authorities go through his finances, it’s unlikely that they’ll walk out empty handed if his history is anything to go by and another reason for electorates to do due diligence on their aspirants before making choices and also for governing bodies such LSK to reign disciplinary actions on rogue characters soiling the profession.
There's no story that cannot be told. We cover the stories that others don't want to be told, we bring you all the news you need. If you have tips, exposes or any story you need to be told bluntly and all queries write to us [email protected] also find us on Telegram
