Crime in Kenya is not only limited within our borders as we seem to have expanded and ventured abroad. Reports now reveal that three governors, a Cabinet secretary, two judges and a senior official in the office of a powerful politician are among tens of Kenyans being sought by the US over links to the notorious Akasha drugs family.
The list of shame including a sitting MP, a former governor, current and former top police bosses and influential businessmen is likely to cause a political storm as close allies of President Uhuru Kenyatta, Deputy President William Ruto and Opposition leader Raila Odinga are among those mentioned in the documents exchanged between Kenyan and US law enforcement agencies.
Two of the governors are said to be from the ruling Jubilee Party, while the third was elected on an ODM ticket. The ODM governor is sought alongside his brother.
“They are wanted by FBI over their links with the Akashas. The two Akasha brothers have extensively named them in their statements,” a government source revealed.
Director of Public Prosecutions Noordin Haji confirmed they have already received several requests in regard to the prominent Kenyans named by the Akashas.
“We have had interactions with them, there have been questions and there are areas where we need to cooperate. Once we agree on how to proceed, then formal extradition requests will be made by the US,” the DPP said.
If extradited, the officials who have been named in New York State court papers, will have to answer to charges including aiding and abetting drug trafficking. The Akasha family has been involved in the drugs trade for years.
On October 26 two brothers, Baktash Akasha, 41, and his brother Ibrahim Akasha, 29, each pleaded guilty before US District Judge Victor Marrero in Manhattan to seven criminal charges, including distribution of heroin and methamphetamine and conspiracy to import the drugs into the United States.
The charges carry a minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life.
The list of shame is not yet out but there are a few leads and cues that give a few details on who might be on there. So can you guess who the criminals are?
One of the Judges has seen to be tough on crime and a stickler for the letter of the law, delivering landmark rulings that upset the Executive.
The Cabinet secretary who is wanted by the FBI was massively involved in Jubilee campaigns.
Also, in the list are a well-known female and a male judge, both whom have had a long career in the Judiciary and are accused of helping protecting the Akasha empire.
The CS on the the list is a renowned politician rewarded by Jubilee for swimming against the tide on ODM political turf. There is also a vocal MP from the Rift Valley allied, serving a second term in office and has been outspoken in opposing the ongoing graft purge.
Also on the wanted list is a former Jubilee governor who lost in controversial circumstances in the last election and a former female MP from Mount Kenya region.
A controversial politician from Western Kenya who ran for election in Nairobi in 2007 is also on the list of shame. Moreover, a senior county official from the Coast is also being sought, alongside a senior police officer who previously served at the Coast and was considered considered to be corrupt.
In what has unearthed the rot in the Kenyan Police Service, a former top officer at the Directorate of Criminal Investigations is also on the wanted list.
“When the brothers encountered legal interference, they bribed Kenyan officials including judges, prosecutors and law enforcement officers in an effort to avoid facing the charges against them in the United States,” the court documents said.
The two Akasha brothers signed a guilty plea with US authorities in an attempt to get a more lenient prison term for charges of drug trafficking, bribery, violence and murder charges.
The brothers are scheduled to be sentenced in February 2019.