he nine people charged with manslaughter over the Solai Dam tragedy were released on Sh5 million bond each on Monday.
The suspects include Patel Farm owner Perry Manusukh and Vinoj Kumar who is the General Manager of Patel Coffee Estates Limited.
They were granted bond with sureties of the same amount, with the alternative of Sh2.5 million cash bail each.
The other accused persons are water rights officer Winnie Muthoni, Water Resources Authority Sub-regional Manager Tomkin Odhiambo, Assistant Technical Coordination Manager Jacinta Were and Nema’s Nakuru county officer Willee Omondi.
Nema’s Nakuru environment officer Lynnet Jepchirchir, county water director Johnson Njuguna and sub-county administrator Julius Kavita were also charged.
The nine were charged with 48 counts of manslaughter following the May incident in which the dam burst, causing raging waters and mud to wreak havoc downstream. They spent the weekend at Naivasha Medium Security Prison.
In today’s ruling at a Naivasha court, they were ordered to surrender their passports to the court ahead of the pre-trial hearing on August 3.
