A third woman identified as Jane Wangui Kago, who is accused of being part of a money-laundering scheme involving Belgian crypto billionaire, Merc De Mesel, has explained that the Ksh49 million gift she received from him was to be used in constructing a house for her mother.
According to the Assets and Recovery Agency (ARA), Wangui had received the cash in two phases; Ksh3.1 million and Ksh45.6 million, which was transferred to her account.
The ARA noted that the suspicious transactions prompted the government agency to summon Wangui to explain the source and purpose of the money.
Heeding the request, Wangui explained that the money was to be used to expand her clothes and salon businesses as well as fund her vacation in Portugal.
Wangui also pointed out that part of the money would be used to build a house in Thogoto, Kiambu County for her mother.
The ARA, however, maintained that the money was part of a money-laundering scheme and coverup by the Belgian mogul.
"We have established that she is part of an international money laundering syndicate in which Marc De Mesel is the kingpin. They have been disguising the source of funds to conceal the fact that they are proceeds of crime, which are liable for forfeiture to the state," ARA investigator, Frederick Musyoki, told the court.
Detailing how they got acquainted with Mesel, Wangui stated that she met with the Belgian mogul at Pirates Beach in Mombasa in 2018.
At the time, Mesel was dating Wangui's younger sister, Tebby Wambuku Kago. The two would eventually solidify their relationship and move in as a couple later that year.
Musyoki, however, intimated that the funds should be seized and forfeited to the state.
Kago is among the women who were allegedly gifted millions by their controversial Belgian billionaire. The story broke out in November 2021, when it was alleged that Mesel gifted Ksh107 million to 21-year-old Felesta Njoroge.
Reports of another girlfriend, Wambuku, receiving Ksh108 million, from Mesel also broke out. Kago became the latest Kenyan to receive millions in her account.
The ARA has since been filing affidavits in a bid to freeze the accounts of the women in order to establish the source and validity of the funds.
