Jailed Kenya Re ex-boss ‘guilty’ of fraudulent house purchase

The jailed former finance director of Kenya Reinsurance Corporation got into more trouble on Thursday after a Nairobi court found him guilty of fraudulently acquiring a house in Karen, Nairobi, close to 14 years ago.

Senior Principal Magistrate Felix Kombo found the former director, John Faustin Kinyua, and Mary Njeri Ng’ang’a Kimingi guilty of illegally acquiring the house that belonged to the corporation.

The two were also convicted of getting Sh132,504, alleged to be an overpayment for the purchase of the house.

The court noted, however, that the money was still being held by the law firm which drafted the agreement.

Ms Kimingi was the director of Rockhound Properties, the company which allegedly purchased the house.

She is the person who signed the agreements on behalf of the company and other directors.

The magistrate noted that the Kenya Re board was kept in the dark by two senior officials. He said was the managing director who authorised the sale while the company secretary prepared the agreement and engaged a law firm to execute it.

Mr Kombo said there was no reason why the officials withheld the information from the board and that the only conclusion he could make was that they were complicit.

“It is my finding that the accused persons jointly contributed to the fraud,” he said.

Mr Kinyua is currently serving a three-year jail term, handed to him more than a month ago after he was found guilty of tricking taxpayers into buying a house at Embakasi’s Villa Franca Estate.

He was jailed alongside Charles Gichane, a former Heritage Insurance manager. They had been given the alternative of paying fines of Sh7.3 million each.

Mr Kinyua and Ms Kimingi were initially charged alongside former Kenya Re officials Johnson Jackson Githaka (MD) and Jane Florence Otieno (company secretary).

Mr Githaka, who is also serving a term in prison over another scandal, and Ms Otieno were let off the hook, because the charge sheet was faulty.

The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) investigated an allegation that the property on Ndege Road was fraudulently sold to Rockhound Properties.

It later found that the money allegedly used to purchase the house was payments from insurance premiums, from Alexander Forbes Insurance Brokers Kenya Limited, now Eagle Africa Insurance Brokers Limited, and United Insurance Company.

Alexander Forbes had sent a cheque of Sh1,070,043, while United Insurance Company had sent one of Sh11,062,461.

The officials allegedly hatched the scheme, claiming the Sh12,132,504 deposits were for the purchase of the house, which used to belong to one Dr Joseph ara Ngok.

Dr Ngok, who wanted to purchase the house at Sh12 million, was only able to pay Sh9 million.

Mr Kinyua and Ms Kimingi will be sentenced on Friday.