How Harun Mwau was linked to the largest drug haul ever in Kenya’s history

In April and November 2014, the Australian navy seized two consignments of heroin off the coast of Kenya, totalling 787 kg and worth about USD278m. Another haul was made in July when Kenyan police found 342 kg of heroin in the tank of a ship docked at the Mombasa port, making it the biggest ever single seizure of drugs in Kenya coastal city. The three seizures roughly equalled the amount captured by 11 east African governments between 1990 and 2009, according to the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime.

The hauls proved once again how Kenya and East Africa waters have become a key export route for heroin from Asia to Europe.

In December 2004 a seizure marked a turning point in Africa drugs trade. It was the biggest ever: 1.1 tonnes coming in a vessel docked at Mombasa port. Cocaine has been seized in Malindi, Mombasa (837.5 Kg) and Nairobi (304 Kg) . The street value was estimated in 80 million USD. Narcotics allegedly came from Colombia through Venezuela.

This large cocaine seizure haul involved all the big players both in politics and drug trafficking in Kenya.

Former Kilome MP Harun Mwau has gone to court seeking to clear his name over Sh5.3 billion cocaine seized in Malindi 14 years ago.

Mr Mwau says in documents filed in court that he has never met Swaleh Kandereni — a businessman believed to be close to Colombia’s drug cartels — and does not have any relationship with him or Mombasa Governor Ali Hassan Joho (also accused of involvement in narcotics trade).

The businessman, who also served as assistant minister in former President Mwai Kibaki’s government, said he did not frequently travel to Colombia as had been alleged in some reports, and that he has no associates in the South American country known to be one of the world’s largest narcotics producers.

John Harun Mwau, was born in Kenya in 1948 to a humble family. But by the 1990s, he was a rich man. Two decades later, he is richer still.The Mwau family was named in the 2014 ‘Wealth in Kenya’ report as one of the richest in the country.

The US government is currently seeking to confiscate 750 millions dollars he has investied there: in 2011 Obama’s administration blacklisted him in the “Kingpin act”.

Mwau began his career as a sharpshooter in the Kenyan police in his 20s.

Mwau ran for the Kenyan presidency in 1992 but lost to president, Daniel Arap Moi. However Moi offered him the role of head of the newly-created Kenya Anti-Corruption Authority. His job as “transparency upholder” lasted just a few months.

After keeping a low profile for several years, he emerged again as a major importer of electronic goods from the Middle East and Europe. But troubles for Mwau started in 2004.

In December that year, Kenyan authorities seized in Nairobi, Mombasa and Malindi an astonishing 1,21 tonnes of cocaine. The African Business magazine suggests the cargo came from Venezuela and Colombia, and was destined for Ireland and the Netherlands. It was the largest drug haul ever in Kenya’s history. Shortly after, investigators raided the depot of Pepe Enterprises Ltd, a Mombasa -based company allegedly owned by John Mwau.

Is Mwau a self made millionaire ?