The court has dismissed a move by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Noordin Haji to extradite former Finance Cabinet Minister Chris Okemo to the United Kingdom for trial over Sh1.5 billion graft charges.
Chief Magistrate Roseline Oganjo yesterday discharged Okemo from the extradition suit after the DPP failed to provide either oral or documentary evidence to demonstrate why the former CS should be taken to the UK to face criminal charges.
The magistrate’s ruling follows the DPP’s decision dated September 20 to close the case without calling witnesses.
At the time, the magistrate stated that the prosecutor, Alexander Muteti, said the DPP had decided not to call five witnesses that he had had invited to give evidence against Okemo.
The witnesses from UK were to testify virtually from September 20 to 22 and also rely on documented evidence.
“When the case was called for hearing on September 20, the prosecutor said he won’t call the five witnesses and will rely on the documentary evidence,” said Oganyo.
“He submitted 14 bundles of documents in court as evidence. He would have called the witnesses to produce the documents. So no documentary evidence has been tendered in accordance with the evidentiary rules. Muteti’s move caught the court and counsel by surprise,” she added.
She also blocked the prosecutor from reopening the case and calling the five witnesses to testify orally.
“To accede to the DPP’s request will be unfair to Okemo in view of the age of the matter. The DPP must be held to his decision as he did on September 20 to close the case without evidence or witnesses. So no evidence has been adduced to warrant the court to allow the extradition,” she said.
The former CS is accused of accepting bribes from foreign companies that were doing business with Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC) during President Daniel Moi’s regime.
