Two foreigners were on Tuesday, January 24, 2023, charged before a Nairobi court with defrauding a businessman of Ksh215 million in a fake gold scam deal.
Cameroonian Abdallah Mckenzy Mckenzy and Nancy Ted Malik Lounou from Gabon appeared before Milimani Chief Magistrate Lucas Onyina where they denied the charge of obtaining money by false pretences.
The prosecution alleges that the two foreigners obtained Ksh215,176,500 from businessman Celik Mesut by falsely pretending they were in a position to sell 33 kilograms of gold.
"On diverse dates between the month of October and December 10, 2022, at Kilimani within Nairobi county, the accused persons Mckenzy and Malik with intend to defraud, jointly with others not before the court, obtained from Mesut the sum of USD 30,451 pretending you were in a position to sell 33 kilograms of gold valued at USD 1,732,500 a fact you knew to be false," the charge sheet read in part.
After denying the charges, the two accused persons sought to be released on reasonable bail terms claiming they will abide by all conditions the court set.
However, the prosecutor Anderson Gikunda vehemently opposed their release on bail terms, pending the hearing of the case, on grounds that they are a flight risk being foreigners.
Further, the prosecutor informed the court that Nancy Ted Malik Louno has no known place of abode and that on December 23, 2022, he was charged and fined Ksh136,000 before Kahawa Law courts for being unlawfully present in Kenya.
"Your honour the accused persons are a flight risk, we will be urging this honourable court to deny the accused persons bond, and the matter to be heard on a priority basis," the prosecutor submitted.
The defence in a quick rejoinder objected to the application by the DPP to deny the accused persons bond, stating that the application violates fundamental human rights.
"The application asking this honourable court to deny the accused persons bond on the premise that the accused persons are not Kenyan Nationals violates the provisions of Article 49 which grants all accused persons the right to be granted bond and or bail on a reasonable basis, this right does not segregate foreign Nationals," lawyer Stanley Kang'ahi said.
The magistrate, however, order the accused person to be detained at Industrial Area Remand prison until January 26, 2023, when he will deliver a ruling on whether to grant the accused persons bond or order their detention pending hearing and determination of their case.
