Deputy President William Ruto’s ally is under investigation after he was nabbed with Sh238 million in foreign currency at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).
Paul Kemboi, who is said to be a politician eyeing the Chesumei constituency seat in Nandi County was arrested by Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) Customs officers based at the airport after he landed in the country from Bujumbura, Burundi.
“Upon arrival, the passenger made a declaration of the currency indicating the origin as Banque de Credit de Bujumbura (BCB) to a recipient Brinks Global Services, Kenya,” a statement from the taxman read in part.
According to the police, Kemboi had a hard time explaining what he does for a living to make the huge sum of cash he was arrested with.
At some point when pressured, he waffled around saying he is a large-scale maize trader based in Burundi and later changed tune, claiming that he had won a lottery what forced the customs officials to confiscate the cash before handing him over to the Anti-Terror Police Unit.
KRA officials said the money was packed as a parcel and the suspect had made a wrongful declaration on the intended destination, before it was flagged as a possible money laundering transaction.
Documents in his possession indicated the parcel had been sent from Banque de Credit de Bujumbura (BCB) to a recipient identified as Brinks Global Services, Kenya.
After clearance by the Customs Unit at the airport, Kemboi presented the money at the Swissport cargo shed with different export documents for shipment to Global Services, UK.
“The documents produced to support the export request were different from those produced on entry into the country,” KRA said.
It is now believed that part of the cash was meant to fund political party related activities around the country.
Kemboi was released yesterday morning on condition he returns to the airport this morning with full details about the owner of the money.
Kemboi is said to have left the country on Wednesday for Somalia before flying to Uganda and later to Bujumbura and then jetted back to Nairobi on the same day evening with the money.
The money is said to have been wired from Dubai and was supposed to be collected in Kigali, Rwanda, however, the Rwandan intelligence community got wind and the events led to President Paul Kagame visiting Nairobi to brief President Uhuru Kenyatta.
A former Cabinet Secretary facing charges in court is said to have been the contact person with Kemboi and he is expected to shed more light on the stash.
KRA has since requested Asset Recovery Agency (ARA) to assist in investigating the matter as a possible money-laundering attempt after noting the inconsistencies in information provided by the passenger.