The High Court has frozen the bank accounts of Kiambu Governor Kimani Wamatangi over graft allegations in another blow to the county boss.
The orders were issued by Justice Benjamin Mwikya on Thursday, January 15, following the Ksh813 million civil recovery case, which was filed by the EACC.
In the ruling, the court said that Wamatangi, together with his wife, children, and 10 other individuals, will not be able to access the funds until further directions from the court, which is set to mention the case on Wednesday, February 4.
EACC had called for the orders in its case, stressing that without them, there was a possibility that the funds, which it alleged were proceeds of graft, could disappear.
According to the judge, there were no preservation orders in place when the case first appeared before the trial court, and this prompted the court's decision to freeze the funds.
“In my mind, the preservation orders were not in force when this matter appeared before the trial judge. Had they been in place, the court would have addressed the merits of the prayers in the application dated November 4, 2025,” Justice Mwikya said.
“I therefore agree with the plaintiff’s counsel that the circumstances have changed, and in the interest of justice, I grant prayer to the plaintiff’s application until February 4, 2026, when this matter will be placed before the court,” he added.
Wamatangi was accused of unlawfully awarding tenders to companies associated with him and his family during the financial years 2018/2019 and 2021/2022, during his tenure as the chairperson of the Senate Standing Committee on Roads and Transportation.
The EACC had recommended that Wamatangi be arraigned in court alongside his wife, sister, and the other individuals, and be charged with conflict of interest, unlawful acquisition of public property, and acquisition of proceeds of crime.
It has not been a good week for Wamatangi. Just a day ago a government demolished several businesses linked to him in the Nyayo Stadium area for an upcoming infrastructural project
In response, the governor, who visited the site just hours after the demolitions on Wednesday, January 15, described the actions as a political witch hunt and was aimed at forcing him out of the 2027 Kiambu gubernatorial race.
"I began here as a small boy selling tea and mandazis and rose to establish the business that was here. What has happened is purely political and intended to silence me and intimidate me," Wamatangi said.
