Agriculture Cabinet Secretary nominee Mithika Linturi has revealed that he has 35 pending cases in court.
The former Meru senator plagued by scandals, made the revelations when he appeared before a Committee on Appointments on Friday, October 21, 2022.
The nominee, however, clarified that all the cases pending in court are civil in nature. The matters, among others, relate to property disputes.
While responding to concerns from National Assembly Minority Leader Opiyo Wandayi on his integrity, Linturi said the only criminal case he had in court on attempted rape had been withdrawn.
"Saying that I have a litany of cases is an understatement. As I sit here I have 35 cases in court," he said.
"The only criminal case that I had in court is the case between the republic and I, where the complainant was Beryl. I was the complainant in this case because it was a case of abduction and is a case where people wanted to extort money from me," he added.
Linturi claimed that he was falsely linked to sexual assault by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) over his political affiliation.
He said the woman decided to withdraw the case on her own volution after reflecting on circumstances related to the complaint.
On why he decided to drop his complaint against the supposed victim of sexual assault, Linturi explained that he did so to 'free his mind'.
"I have fought so many cases. I want to free my mind given the opportunity to work for this country. I must forget the pain and persecution that I have gone through. I have left to the conscience of all my persecutors and God to deal with them," he added.
Linturi walks free
The case against the politician was withdrawn on October 4. The Office of the Directorate of Public Prosecution told a Milimani court that the victim had resolved to withdraw her complaint after an out-of-court settlement.
"I confirm the parties had agreed to withdraw the complaint and the proceedings against the accused person and the office of the DPP had received an affidavit sworn by the woman on September 1, 2022, and was amenable to the withdrawal of the complaint and the proceedings," State Prosecutor Nyakira Kibera said.
" I also examined the complainant on the voluntariness of her decision to withdraw the matter complaint. The complainant confirmed that she had willingly agreed to withdraw the complaint without any force or threats and that she did not intend to raise any other claim against the Linturi in the future," the prosecutor added.
The woman had accused the former Meru Senator of sneaking into their room at Maiyan Villa’s hotel in Nanyuki on January 30, 2021, where the politician intentionally and unlawfully attempted to rape her when her husband was out.
In the case, Linturi also faced another charge of indecently touching the woman without her consent.
Earlier, Linturi had told the court that the sexual assault case against him was a “malicious” afterthought reached to pressure him to drop his extortion and kidnapping complaint against the woman and other prosecution witnesses.
