The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) has launched investigations into former Sports Cabinet secretary Rashid Echesa over his alleged connection to money laundering activities.
People Daily reported that Echesa may have been exposed to money laundering by his associate Joseph Waswa who is linked with last week’s recovery of Ksh32 billion fake currency in Ruiru.
According to a sleuth privy to the probe, the sacked CS was in constant communication with Waswa.
In communication with suspect
A call data analysis showed that Waswa had been in communication with two other suspects, Joseph Munyao and Nancy Muthoni, and in most cases, he would call Echesa after calling the two.
Detectives are trying to establish if the former CS visited the building where the fake currency was found.
They also want to establish the relationship between the former Echesa and Cameroonian Peter Longa who was extradited from the country in 2018 over money laundering.
Longa had been deported to Cameroon on January 7, 2017 and declared persona non grata by the then Interior CS Joseph Nkaiserry but found his way back to Kenya.
The Law
“In accordance with Article 152(5) of the Constitution, as read together with Article 152(1)(d) of the Constitution, the appointment of Mr Rashid Echesa Mohamed, as a Cabinet Secretary has been vacated,” read a statement in the Executive Order No.3 of 2019.
In a recent interview, he admitted that Waswa, who was charged alongside six others of defrauding businessman off Kshs 10 million using Uhuru’s name and voice, was his personal friend but refuted claims that they were business partners.