The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has recovered a Ksh70 million government house located in Nyali, Mombasa County from a former lands commissioner over a breach of public trust.
Justice Lucas Leperes Naikuni of the Mombasa Environment and Land Court ruled in favour of EACC and ordered the former government official to pay an added Ksh5 million in damages for giving out public land to private entities.
In particular, the former Lands commissioner was faulted for illegally acquiring the mansion during his tenure.
Justice Naikuni ruled that the government house belonged to the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA).
The judge also ordered the former commissioner and two other private companies to pay a joint Ksh30 million in general damages for illegally holding public land for 22 years.
According to Justice Naikuni, the landmark ruling was a new and progressive philosophy of law in the recovery of grabbed public land in Kenya.
EACC had filed a suit against the three defendants in 2009 as they sought their title deeds to be revoked and the land to be recovered for public use.
Commissioned in 2011, EACC has been on a mission to recover public property stolen from the government dating back to the late 1990s.
Recently, the commission dragged the National Council of Churches of Kenya (NCCK) to court over a Ksh50 million parcel of land.
According to EACC lawyers, NCCK illegally acquired the land and ought to relinquish ownership of the land.
The defendant, however, argued that they were victims of a sour deal, as they had not been aware that the land sold to them had been grabbed.
