NAIROBI, Kenya – Juja Member of Parliament George Koimburi Ndung’u was on Monday arraigned before a Nairobi court to face charges in connection with an alleged scheme to fraudulently acquire land worth Sh10 million.
The legislator was charged with four counts: conspiracy to defraud, forgery, obtaining registration of land by false pretences, and uttering false documents.
According to the charge sheet, Koimburi, together with others not before the court, is accused of conspiring to defraud businessman Julius Gitonga Githinji of a 1.31-hectare parcel of land in Ruiru, valued at Sh10 million, on or before March 26, 2020.
In one of the counts, he is alleged to have forged a sale agreement, purporting it to be a genuine document signed by the complainant.
He is also accused of unlawfully obtaining registration of the land at the Thika District Land Registry and later presenting false documents at the Ruiru Land Registry.
Koimburi denied all charges. Through his lawyer, he asked the court to grant him a free bond, insisting he was not a flight risk and warning that prolonged absence from Parliament could cost him his seat.
The defence further told the court that the MP had reached a settlement with the complainant and had written to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) seeking to have the case withdrawn.
Senior Principal Magistrate Robinson Ondieki, however, released him on a cash bail of Sh100,000.
Koimburi’s co-accused, Shelmith Karungiri Maina, had earlier been charged and freed on a similar cash bail, while a third suspect, lawyer Gathii Irungu, is said to be abroad for treatment and has yet to take plea.
The case will be mentioned on October 22 for pre-trial.
