Detectives want to find out why money paid to Italian firm found its way back to Kenya in their ongoing investigations into the stalled Sh63 billion Kimwarer and Arror dam projects in Elgeyo Marakwet County.
George Kinoti (DCI) said the syndicate is no longer domestic but an international organised crimethat needed to involve all countries invoolved including United Kingdom and Italy “because that is where our money was wired”.
The Sh6.3 billion an amount equivalent to 10 per cent of the total cost for the two dams – was wired by Treasury to Milan in Italy in 2017.
However, Sh4 billion was re-routed to a bank in London and soon after to another bank in Nairobi.
“We have the account number the money was sent to in London and Nairobi. We don’t know why the money was being sent to Nairobi and that is part of our investigations,” DCI Director George Kinoti said
Once in Nairobi, the money was withdrawn in US dollars from a bank in Westlands, Mr Kinoti said.
Detectives from the investigative body pressed MR Rotich to explain why Kenya paid Sh7 billion to the contractor for a project that was not insured.
According to records at KVDA, Arror Dam was to cost Sh38.5 billion while Kimwarer Dam in Keiyo South was to gobble up Sh28 billion.
In London, the DCI has contacted the National Crime Agency, whose mandate is to investigate organised crime; human, weapon and drug trafficking; cybercrime; and economic crime across regional and international borders.
“We are dealing with several companies with different directors. That is why we are going through this methodically and clinically. But the net is getting wide,” Mr Kinoti said on the progress of investigations. On Thursday, after perusing the statement by Mr Rotich, the DCI asked him to return and clarify some grey areas in his statement.
The DCI appeared to get a boost from Britain this week, when British High Commissioner Nick Hailey pledged “international support to root out corruption” and asked anyone formally indicted in corruption to step aside to allow an unfettered investigation.
At #DevolutionConference2019 I pledged international support to root out corruption, and urged that anyone formally indicted for corruption step aside to allow an unfettered investigation. Corruption is theft from wananchi and holds development back. pic.twitter.com/gH1JrptqwJ— Nic Hailey (@HCNicHailey) March 5, 2019
“This is not a war against an individual or a community, but against a crime that robs us the opportunity to build a nation,” he said at the opening ceremony of the Sixth Devolution Conference in Kutus.
Later, Orange Democratic Movement leader Raila Odinga accused Deputy President William Ruto of becoming a stumbling block to the war on corruption after he (Dr Ruto) questioned the figures given by the DCI.
DN body text: Dr Ruto had said that the figure in question was Sh7 billion and not Sh21 billion, which Mr Kinoti says he is investigating. “Don’t come and tell us it was not Sh20 billion and only Sh7 billion. Who are you to tell us? How did you know?” posed Mr Odinga.