Revealed: Ruto's Whereabouts During Echesa's Ksh40B Meeting

Deputy President William Ruto gestures during a meeting at his office in Karen, Nairobi in July 2018
Deputy President William Ruto gestures during a meeting at his office in Karen, Nairobi in July 2018
File
DPPS

Deputy President William Ruto has shed more light to the Ksh40 billion fraudulent arms deal scandal that saw former Sports Cabinet Secretary Rashid Echesa arrested and charged alongside three other individuals; Daniel Otieno Omondi, Clifford Okoth Onyango and Kennedy Oyoo.

In a comprehensive statement signed by the DP's communication secretary David Mugonyi on Monday, February 17, details of Ruto and his top aides' whereabouts on the day Echesa allegedly met the Polish arms dealers at his Harambee House Annex office were disclosed.

CCTV footage had surfaced, showing that Echesa accompanied by two representatives of Eco Advanced Technologies LLC had arrived at Harambee House Annex on Thursday, February 13, at 9.39 a.m. before they left 23 minutes later.

In his statement, Ruto asserted that at the time of the meeting, he was working from his Karen office alongside his personal assistant Farouk Kibet, chief of staff Ken Osinde and private secretary Reuben Maiyo.

Former Sports Cabinet Secretary Richard Echesa (far right) in the dock at the Milimani Law Courts on Monday, February 17
Former Sports Cabinet Secretary Richard Echesa (far right) in the dock at the Milimani Law Courts on Monday, February 17
Citizen Digital

The statement further claimed that at Ruto's Harambee House Annex office, Echesa and the two individuals who accompanied him were ushered into a public waiting room before being informed that the Deputy President didn't have an appointment scheduled with them.

"Chief of staff Ken Osinde, private secretary Reuben Maiyo and personal assistant Farouk Kibet were not in Harambee House Annex on the material day as alleged by the media.

"Between 9.35 a.m. and 10.02 a.m. (a total of 23 minutes, as per the recording), Echesa, in the company of two men visited the office claiming he had an appointment.

"Security officers manning the reception ushered him and two men in his company, to the public waiting room, as is the standard applied procedure to all visitors," the statement read in part. 

He went on to state that after leaving the Karen office, he headed to Murang'a for a funeral service attended by leaders including Kandara MP Alice Wahome, Kikuyu MP Kimani Ichungwah and Senate Majority Leader Kipchumba Murkomen.

Echesa and his three co-accused were on Tuesday, February 17 arraigned at the Milimani Law Courts and charged with twelve counts.

Among the charges levelled against them were conspiracy to commit a felony, making a document without authority, obtaining money by false pretences and impersonating a public service officer.

The court was told that on October 19, 2019, Echesa obtained Ksh11.5 million from Kozlowski Stanley Bruno by pretending that he was in a position to award him a contract for supply and delivery of military equipment to the Ministry of Defence.

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