The Court of Appeal has upheld the High Court's 2022 decision to prosecute former Land Minister and former Kipipiri Member of Parliament, Amos Kimunya, who was charged with irregularly allocation of land valued at Ksh600 million to a private company.
In a statement on Thursday, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) revealed that a ruling made by a three-judge-bench determined that the evidence presented by the High Court was sufficient to place Kimunya, alongside two of his co-accused in their defence.
"The Court of Appeal in Nairobi has ordered ex-Housing minister Amos Kimunya be placed on his defense in a case in which he is charged with an irregular allocation of land to a private company," part of the statement read.
The three-judge bench comprising Justices P.O. Kiage, Ali-Aroni, and L. Achode, also dismissed Kimunya's appeal and ruled that DPP Renson Ingonga's application was enough for a prima facia case against the appellants.
This comes a few years after the High Court overturned the former Minister's acquittal and ordered his case be remitted to the Chief Magistrate’s Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Court for further hearing and disposal.
The three who were charged with Abuse of Office, Failure to disclose a Private Interest to one’s Principal, Fraudulent disposal of public property, and Breach of trust by a person employed in the Public Service, were initially acquitted by the Chief Magistrate’s Court upon which the ODPP made a subsequent appeal to the High Court.
After the High Court overturned the acquittal, the three moved to the Appellate Court arguing that the judge had made definitive findings that would prejudice their right to a fair trial.
However, the appellate judges noted that the High Court’s decision was based on whether the prosecution had established a prima facie case as opposed to the guilt or innocence of the appellants.
The case, which has now been referred to the Chief Magistrate’s Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Court, will be heard on an expedited basis on April 7, 2025.
The four charges that the three face stem from an illegal allocation and transfer of a 25-acre parcel of land from the Settlement Fund Trust (SFT) to a private company. Reportedly, the transfer did not follow due process or obtain the necessary approvals from other trustees of the SFT.
One of the coaccused served as the Director of Land Adjudication and Settlement, while the other was the Director of the private company, in which Kimunya was also a shareholder. The illegal transfer allegedly happened in 2005 when Kimunya was Minister of Lands.
The land had been allocated to the Njabini Agricultural Training Centre (ATC), a government facility established to train farmers and promote agricultural development.
