The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has moved to court seeking to recover public land worth approximately KSh790 million in Kisumu, alleging that the property was illegally excised from land belonging to the Kenya Prisons Service before being transferred into private ownership through a fraudulent scheme.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the Commission said it had filed civil proceedings to recover 7.6 acres of public land located in Milimani, Kisumu City, which forms part of a larger 16-acre parcel that had been reserved for Kenya Prisons Service staff housing and regional offices.
“The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has commenced civil proceedings to recover 7.6 acres of public land in Milimani, Kisumu City, which was allegedly illegally excised from land belonging to the Kenya Prisons Service and converted into private ownership,” the Commission said.
According to EACC, the disputed land is currently valued at approximately KSh790 million, excluding developments, and about KSh4.3 billion when the existing developments are taken into account.
The Commission said investigations began after the Kenya Prisons Service lodged a petition in February 2022 seeking investigations into what it described as the unlawful occupation, subdivision and alienation of its land in Kisumu.
Investigators established that the land had originally been reserved for prison use under colonial-era planning instruments in the 1960s before being reaffirmed through Government development plans in the 1970s as public land designated for prison infrastructure.
“The Commission established that the Kenya Prisons Service had developed staff housing on the property before the alleged encroachment and subdivision occurred,” the statement reads.
According to the anti-graft agency, investigations revealed that around 1989, the then Assistant Minister for Home Affairs and Heritage, allegedly working together with other public officials, irregularly acquired approximately 7.6 acres of the land through fraudulent and unlawful processes.
EACC further alleges that the acquisition was facilitated using forged and irregular documentation, including a fake allotment letter and altered development plans.
The Commission said that although the land had initially been associated with the establishment of an educational institution, that intended public purpose was later abandoned and the property was instead redirected for private residential development.
“Subsequently, the land was subdivided into 92 parcels and transferred to private individuals. The area is now fully developed and is commonly known as Winam Estate, also referred to as Grace Ogot Estate,” the Commission said.
EACC has now asked the Environment and Land Court to cancel all titles arising from the transactions and declare the entire chain of transactions illegal.
The Commission is also seeking orders declaring that the transactions were fraudulent, null and void, and directing that the land be restored to the Kenya Prisons Service.
“Consequently, the Commission has moved to court seeking cancellation of all resultant titles, declarations that the entire chain of transactions was illegal, fraudulent, null and void, and restoration of the land to the Kenya Prisons Service,” the statement says.
The Commission disclosed that it has already filed nine asset recovery suits before the Environment and Land Court in Kisumu targeting parcels within the disputed 7.6-acre portion as part of the first phase of the recovery process.
EACC said the matter reflects a wider trend of public land reserved for essential government functions being unlawfully diverted into private ownership through abuse of office, fraudulent documentation and manipulation of land allocation processes.
“The Commission notes that this matter reflects a broader pattern in which public land reserved for essential Government functions has been unlawfully diverted into private ownership through abuse of office, fraudulent documentation, and manipulation of land allocation processes,” it said.
Reaffirming its commitment to protecting public assets, the Commission maintained that public land must only be allocated and utilised in accordance with the Constitution and the law.
