Just hours after detectives from the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) raided the home and office of Kiambu Governor Kimani Wamatangi, the county chief has been arrested and taken to the commission's offices in Nairobi.
During the morning raid, nine other senior county officials also had their premises searched over suspected embezzlement of public funds and conflict of interest.
Pressure has been mounting on the EACC to rein in the leadership over the alleged mismanagement of funds in the county.
During the arrest, Wamatangi was seen waving to the locals from the back seat of an SUV as the detectives escorted him to their offices for interrogation.
Some of the residents staged protests outside his home after the apprehension, demanding his unconditional release.
The residents, while chanting anti-President William Ruto songs, alleged that the president was aware of the scheme behind the county boss's frustrations.
However, the presence of heavily armed police officers deterred their attempts to block the convoy transporting Wamatangi and the other county officials.
This is the second time that the county is hitting headlines over the conduct of its leadership, with the former Governor Ferdinand Waititu currently locked behind bars over a multimillion graft case.
Waititu was sentenced to 12 years in prison by Milimani Anti-Corruption Court Chief Magistrate Thomas Nzioki on February 13 after being convicted in a Ksh588 million graft case.
The arrest comes two months after Kiambu Senator Karungo Wa Thang'wa, in February, called on the EACC to investigate the county's payment system, alleging that the governor had switched from an automated one to a manual one.
The Senator alleged that this change had created a perfect cover for ghost workers, noting that Ksh390 million had been moved under this guise.
The commission is expected to address the press and issue a formal statement on the circumstances surrounding the apprehension of the county chief.
