Dave Munya Mwangi, the former Internal Security Permanent Secretary, has been charged with defrauding City businessman Hasmita Patel of Sh350 million in a land fraud scheme.
The accusations involve Mwangi illegally acquiring a 1.59-hectare piece of land located along Mombasa Road, which he allegedly leased to Onda Concrete Limited for Sh 12 million.
Mwangi, who appeared before Milimani Principal Magistrate Benmark Ekhubi, faced five charges including conspiracy to commit a felony, forgery of land documents, and obtaining money by false pretenses. He denied all charges.
The charges stem from an accusation that Mwangi forged a land grant dated November 23, 2021, which he presented as genuine to mislead authorities.
He is also accused of forging the signatures of former land commissioners Sammy Silas Kommen Mwita and Jane Kanja, which were placed on the forged grant.
Further allegations suggest that on November 10, 2023, Mwangi, alongside other unidentified individuals, fraudulently obtained Sh12 million from Onda Concrete Limited by falsely claiming that he could lease the disputed land to the company.
The fraudulent activities were reported to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) in December 2023.
Mwangi appeared in court and, through his defense, requested lenient bond terms. He highlighted that a related case was pending in the Environment and Land Court and insisted that he is not a flight risk, pledging to comply with all court orders.
Magistrate Ekhubi granted Mwangi bail, setting the bond at Sh 20 million or a cash bail of Sh 5 million, with one contact person required.
The case is scheduled for a pretrial hearing on January 20, 2024.
