Pyrethrum Processing C*mpany of Kenya top bosses arrested

By , K24 Digital
On Sat, 28 Sep, 2019 11:50 | < 1 min read
The Pyrethrum Processing Company of Kenya MD, Paul Lolwerikoi, is among the firm’s three top bosses who were arrested on Friday, September 27. [PHOTO | FILE]
The Pyrethrum Processing Company of Kenya MD, Paul Lolwerikoi, is among the firm’s three top bosses who were arrested on Friday, September 27. [PHOTO | FILE]
The Pyrethrum Processing Company of Kenya MD, Paul Lolwerikoi, is among the firm’s three top bosses who were arrested on Friday, September 27. [PHOTO | FILE]

Anti-graft detectives on Friday evening arrested the Pyrethrum Processing Company of Kenya (PPCK) top bosses on suspicion of engaging in irregular procurement, which has led to a loss of Ksh2.5 million.

The company’s managing director Paul Lolwerikoi, finance manager Rufus Ngothi and head of procurement Peter Kahubuthu were arrested in Nakuru, the headquarters of the pyrethrum company.

The offences the three are accused of include: irregular procurement, procurement without prior planning and acquisition of public funds by improper borrowing.

The EACC said they had been investigating the allegations since March 2019, when they were reported to the anti-graft agency.

The DPP has given the greenlight for the three suspects to be charged in court on Monday, September 30.

Lolwerikoi, Ngothi and Kahubuthu are being held at a Nakuru police post.

In March, EACC detectives raided the pyrethrum processing company and confiscated several documents, which they combed for evidence.

The firm’s MD, Lolwerikoi, was also questioned for hours at the EACC South Rift headquarters before he was released.

In February 2019, Pyrethrum Board of Kenya Staff Superannuation Scheme raised a red flag over the lease of the properties belonging to the defunct Pyrethrum Board of Kenya (PBK) by PPCK.

The former board has property spread across the country worth more than Ksh4 billion.

The scheme members led by their spokesperson, Harun Tinga, said it was wrong for PPCK to lease some of its properties while the scheme is in the process of being liquidated.

The scheme was liquidated last year due to heavy debts amounting to nearly Ksh2billion owed to pensioners and more than 200 workers at the Nakuru factory.