On May 31, 2022, the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) filed a court case against a junior officer in the Ministry of Education, Joshua Ocharo Momanyi, for allegedly creating a ghost school and receiving government disbursements amounting to Sh11 million.
According to court documents, Mr. Momanyi created a fake public school and opened a bank account, which received capitation funds for one year before the fraud was detected.
He used the money to buy two plots in Mavoko and Komarock in Machakos County and an expensive motor vehicle.
Mr. Momanyi works as a clerical officer at the State Department of Early Learning and Basic Education and is based at the ministry's headquarters in Nairobi.
His duties included data entry from forms submitted by sub-county directors of education.
Between August 2017 and June 2018, while preparing schedules of schools that were to benefit from free day secondary education funds, Mr. Momanyi inserted the name of a non-existent secondary school called Mundeku Secondary School in Khwisero sub-county, Kakamega County.
He also provided the bank account of the fake school, resulting in him fraudulently receiving disbursements from the ministry amounting to Sh11,131,305 in his personal account at Equity Bank.
The EACC alleges that Mr. Momanyi's actions were at the expense of the children of Kenya, who are the beneficiaries of free education.
The commission intends to show in court sale agreements, funds transfer forms, certificates of official search, and deposit slips as evidence to prove that the transactions were made.
Mr. Momanyi also allegedly purchased a motor vehicle with registration number KCP 186L from Kencarz Ltd for Sh2.5 million payable in instalments.
The EACC wants to recover the public funds, alternatively order that the two land parcels purchased by Mr. Momanyi are proceeds of crime and are therefore liable for forfeiture to the government.
