Top officials of the National Museum of Kenya (NMK) have been charged over a sh 491 million graft case.
The Director General Mzalendo Kibunja was charged alongside Stanvas Ongalo Opija ( Director Human Resources and Administration), Oliver Okinyi Rabour was ICT officer and payroll accountant, Wycliffe Odhiambo Ongata trading as Galmalink Enterprises and Oscar Mwaura trading as Altcoms Limited was charged before anti-corruption Chief magistrate Victor Wakumile.
They faced 10 counts of conspiracy to commit a corruption offence, embezzlement of public funds, abuse of office, money laundering and acquisition of public funds irregularly.
Mr Kibunja and his co-accused denied paying ghost workers Sh 491,214,551 by including their names in the payroll of the National Museum of Kenya.
The said money was paid in salaries and gratuities.
Mr Wakumile heard that the accused persons received 491.2 million into their accounts while knowing the said money was proceeds of crime.
These suspects the court heard pretended to be the ghost workers who had been paid salaries and gratuity through Galmalink and Altcoms Limited within six years between July 2016 and June 2022.
Ongata who was trading as Galmalink allegedly received Sh 14,560,446 from Oscar Mwaura and Victor Owuor knowing the said money was proceeds of crime unlawfully paid from the National Museum of Kenya (MMK).
The said monies were in the form of salaries and gratuity to persons employed by NMK.
Rabour and company Florab Technical Services Limited received irregularly 5,002,500.
Mwaura trading as Altcoms Enterprises was accused of receiving Sh 24,510,000 knowing the money was proceeds of crime paid by NMK.
Mzalendo Kibunja was separately charged with financial misconduct when he was employed by NMK and failed to comply with Regulation 121 of the Public Finance Management (of the National Government Regulations 2015).
He denied that he wastefully expended Sh 441,392,075 in salaries and gratuity paid to ghost workers at the NMK.
Ogalo was also charged with financial misconduct by incurring a wasteful expenditure of Sh 49,885,476.
The said money was paid in salaries and gratuities to ghost workers at NMK.
Ogalo, Rabour, Ongata and Mwaura were charged with conspiracy to defraud NMK sh 49,885,476 corruptly.
They were accused of colluding with a private individual to embezzle the said money.
Mzalendo Kibunja faced another count of abuse of office by improperly conferring Sh 441,392,075 as salaries to ghost workers of NMK.
Ogalo who was the acting Director General and the Director of Human Resources and Administration abused his office by authorizing payments conferring a benefit improperly of Sh 49,885,476 to ghost workers of NMK.
The alleged offence was committed between February 1, 2022 and July 1, 2022.
All the five accused denied a joint charge of conspiracy to defraud NMK Sh 441,392,075.
Kibunja through his lawyer Masangya Mwema applied to be freed on bond saying he is not a flight risk and that he cooperated with investigators during the probe of the offense.
Wakumile was urged by Mwema to release Kibunja on reasonable bond terms as he will turn up in court during the hearing of the case
“The offense against Kibunja is bailable and I urge this court to exercise it’s descretion through admitting the accused on reasonable terms which are not punitive,” Muema prayed.
Dancan Okatch defending Ongata and Mwaura urged the court to free the accused on bond saying they are not flight risk and have pledged to comply with terms imposed by the court.
In his ruling, Wakumile ordered each of the accused to deposit a bond of Sh 10 million with a surety of the same amount or alternative cash bail of Sh 5 million with a contact person.
He also ordered the accused not to interfere with the witnesses nor contact them and to deposit their travel documents in court and fixed the case for pre-trial and directions within a fortnight.