Businessman Mukuria Ngamau will serve a mandatory seven-year jail term and pay a hefty penalty of Sh900 million for defrauding Kenyan taxpayers through illicit payments siphoned from a national fund intended to finance youths’ businesses.
The Nairobi-based businessman, 48, was on Thursday fined Sh720.8 million for receiving Sh180 million falsified payments from the Youth Enterprise Development Fund.
Chief Magistrate Douglas Ogoti also directed Mr Ngamau’s trading company, Quorandum Limited, to refund the State agency Sh180 million, being the amount that was lost in a dubious contract awarded seven years ago.
Mr Ogoti in Milimani, Nairobi, meted the sentence after finding Mr Ngamau guilty of five counts of looting the amount from the Youth Fund seven years ago.
Mr Mukuria Ngamau, the Director of Quorandum Ltd.
Photo credit: File | Evans Habil | Nation Media Group
He was found guilty of conspiracy to commit an economic crime, unlawful acquisition of public property and making false documents. He committed the offences on diverse dates between November 17, 2014 and May 4, 2015 within Nairobi county.
Evidence showed that Mr Ngamau and his trading company received the money without rendering any services and after forging contract documents for provision of ICT consultancy services.
The businessman colluded with former Youth Fund CEO, Ms Catherine Namuye (now deceased), and transferred the money to Quorandum Ltd through the Fund's main account held at Chase Bank.
Mukuria Ngamau explains how he got Sh180m from the Youth Fund
On the offence of unlawful acquisition of public property, he was fined Sh258,619,156 or seven years imprisonment in default, while on the other counts of making false documents he was sentenced to three years for each.
The court did not explain whether the last sentences are mandatory carry the option of a fine. He committed the offences on diverse dates between November 17, 2014 and May 4, 2015 within Nairobi county.
The sentence comes three years after the properties that Ngamau had purchased using the money were seized by the Assets Recovery Agency after been flagged as proceeds of crime, in a move that may further complicate his efforts to raise the penalties imposed by court yesterday.
The properties include a luxurious five-bedroom house situated at Duchess Park apartments along Hatheru Road.
According to evidence tabled in court, the magistrate observed that Mr Ngamau pitched the idea of an ICT consultancy tender to the CEO and they later discussed how to implement it.
While convicting the businessman, Mr Ogoti noted that procurement rules and procedures, as stipulated in the Public Procurement and Disposal Act, were not adhered to.
Mr Ngamau had been charged together with the Fund's former officials including the late Ms Nambuye and Mr Bruce Odhiambo, who also passed away during pendency of the trial, leaving the businessman to face the music alone.
His wife, Doreen Waithera, was also dropped from the case.
