The Director of Public Prosecution Noordin Haji has withdrawn charges against ten accused persons in the Ksh4.5 billion Lake Basin scam case due to lack of evidence.
The Prosecution, through state Henry Kinyanjui, said that the ex-suspects will now be state witnesses in a case against Kisumu county assembly speaker Onyango Oloo, former LBDA managing director Peter Aguko, Bobasi MP Innocent Obiri and 10 others.
The charges against Boniface Orori Simbaa and nine others were withdrawn under section 87(a)of the Criminal Procedure Code.
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This means that in the event the police find further evidence, they might be charged afresh.
The withdrawn charges are in respect of two of the cases that have pending in court relating to inflation of the cost of the Lake Basin Mall.
The ten accused persons had written to the DPP seeking to have their prosecution reviewed before their trial kicked off.
The Prosecution further sought to consolidate Aguko's case with that of Onyango Oloo who had been charged in a separate file.
"We seek to have anti-corruption case number 25 and 26 of 2019 consolidated and heard together as the two arise from transactions relating to financing, construction and development of the Lake Basin Development Authority lower Kanyakwar Phase 1 Project," state counsel Kinyanjui informed the court.
However, in a brief ruling Anti-Corruption magistrate Eunice Kagure allowed the state request to drop the charges against the 10 accused persons.
"I find the reasons given are meritorious. I allow prayer and the accused persons are hereby discharged under section 87 (a) of the CPC. Their bail and securities shall be released forthwith," the magistrate ordered.
However, the DPP has filed a new amended charge sheet against 13 accused persons and are expected to face 22 new charges over the lake basin mall scandal.
In the first count, it states that on between May 2,2018 and November 2,2021 within the republic of Kenya, the accused persons conspired to commit an offence of corruption namely fraud to the loss of Ksh4,509,551,167 from the Government of Kenya in respect of tender for construction, development and financing of retail mall at Kanyakwar, Kisumu know as the Lake Basin Development Authority, Lower Kanyakwar phase 1 project.
The accused persons are also facing charges of abuse of office, engaging in a project without prior planning, willful failure to comply with procurement laws, conflict of interest among others.
In the case, Oloo is accused of conspiring with the contractors including Zeyun Yang and Zhang Jing, directors of Edermann Property Limited, to defraud the public of billions of shillings in the tendering for the construction of the LBDA mall in Kisumu County.
The firm, Edermann, was accused of bribing Oloo, the then chairman of the LBDA board, with Ksh15 million.
The board members are also accused of approving the borrowing of Ksh1.2 billion from Co-operative Bank, bringing the total borrowing to Ksh2.5 billion.
According to the charges the tender was awarded on March 14, 2013 and former Lake Basin Development Authority boss Aguko and ex-chairman David Oyosi executed the agreement.
The case will be mentioned on Thursday November 4,2021 for further directions on the amendment of the charges.
