Former Sports Cabinet Secretary Rashid Echesa was on Thursday, March 28, arrested for his alleged role in an extortion ring targeting Kakamega Governor Fernandes Barasa.
Reports indicated that police officers attached to Muthaiga Police Station seized the former CS from his house on Thursday afternoon and taken to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Kiambu Road for interrogation.
According to the officers, Echesa had been avoiding police trail.
According to Echesa's lawyers, Danstan Omari and Cliff Ombeta, the police officers did not provide any information regarding his arrest warrant including the charges levelled against their client.
They termed his arrest as a political witchhunt by his detractors.
"We have not been told the amount that was involved in these allegations. There is no complainant and if you look at the circumstances, Echesa was the initial person to file a formal complaint," Omari stated.
"Even though it is Easter, we will file an application in court since it's a matter of life and death to ensure he is released."
The incident comes after a man alleged to be Echesa's handler was taken to court for allegedly extorting Ksh240 million from the Kakamega governor.
The suspect was charged with two counts including conspiracy to commit a felony and demanding property with force.
The handler was accused of leading a gang that coerced and extorted the amount from Barasa.
He denied the charges and was released on a Ksh2 million bond with a surety of the same amount.
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