The High Court has dismissed a case filed by the Asset Recovery Agency (ARA) seeking to have millions of shillings in the bank accounts of former Nairobi Governor Mike Mbuvi Sonko declared proceeds of crime and forfeited to the State.
Justice Nixon Sifuna, in his judgment, ruled that the Agency failed to provide sufficient evidence linking the funds to any criminal activity.
The judge faulted ARA investigators for failing to verify the properties Sonko allegedly sold, the purchase prices, and the identities of the alleged buyers. He also noted that the Agency did not present statements from the supposed buyers, which would have been critical to prove its case.
“I am of the view that suspicion has to be founded and reasonable. It cannot just be from without. Where the Agency’s action arises from a complaint, the complaint should be specified and explained, even if the complainant’s name is not disclosed,” Justice Sifuna stated.
The court further criticized ARA for relying only on bank statements beginning in August 2017, when Sonko became governor, while failing to provide records from before that period that could have allowed for a fair comparison.
“Being a public institution, the ARA is under a public duty to provide not only the evidence that incriminates a suspect but also that which exculpates him if available. Unfortunately, this was not the case here,” the judge observed.
Justice Sifuna concluded that the evidence presented was insufficient to prove that the money was proceeds of crime. He dismissed the case with costs and ordered that the funds, which had been preserved under an interlocutory order since February 2020, be released to Sonko forthwith, unless otherwise lawfully held
