Governor Okoth Obado, a man that has become more famous than some of Kenya’s celebrities is at it again. This time his troubles with the law has landed him at the Kibra law courts.
Obado is at the Kibera Law Courts to answer to gun related charges. Mr Obado was arrested yesterday after eight firearms were found at his homes during a raid by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) detectives.
In the dramatic arrest by five plain-clothes officers, Obado was whisked from a taxi in the basement of a city hotel.
Police said he had left an event to meet international development partners attended by Deputy President William Ruto midway. The officers drove Mr Obado to the offices of the Special Crimes Prevention Unit (SCPU) off Ngong Road and later moved to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) headquarters along Kiambu Road.
EACC detectives on November 13 descended on the Governor’s office and three homes in an investigation over questionable tenders.
At his home in Migori, they found 3 guns under a mattress in his bedroom while his house in Lavington, Nairobi had five. According to the law, the guns are supposed to be kept in a safe. The pistols had more than 100 bullets. Mr Obado who is a licensed firearm holder has told police some of the guns belonged to him and his aides.
Obado was just last month released on a 5 million bond with two sureties of KES 5 Million each in relation to the gruesome murder of Rongo University student Sharon otieno.
The Migori Governor is also accused by the anti-graft body, EACC of siphoning Ksh.2 billion from the county coffers through companies registered by his relatives.
“The commission received credible information that a few persons well known to be proxies of the governor, registered several companies for the purpose of fraudulent acquisition of public funds through fictitious contracts,” says EACC in documents filed in court.
EACC investigators are said to be finalizing on their graft investigations before hauling the suspects in court.
Obado is believed to have used the stolen cash to maintain a flashy lifestyle for himself and his family. Detectives say that through the procurement scam, Mr Obado was able to build a home worth Sh100 million in Uriri in Migori County and send at least Sh13 million to his children.
Should Obado be released on bail or detained?