This archive report was first published on 25 July 2019.
David Kipchumba Kimosop, the former boss of the Kerio Valley Development Authority (KVDA), is facing a difficult decision: whether to return to Kenya and face arrest in the Sh63 billion Kimwarer and Arror dams scandal.
Before his tumultuous tenure as KVDA boss, Kimosop had spent 19 years working as a banker, focusing on generating revenue for his employer's shareholders while ensuring customers received quality services.
However, after his sacking, Kimosop's situation has changed dramatically. His lawyer, Katwa Kigen, revealed that Kimosop is currently in the Democratic Republic of Congo, but he will have to present himself to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) immediately after landing in Nairobi or risk being arrested.
As the only big-name suspect in the scandal who has yet to be arrested, all eyes are now on Kimosop. His former colleagues, including former Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich, former principal secretaries Kamau Thugge and Susan Koech, and National Environment Management Authority Director-General Geoffrey Wahungu, have already been charged and released.
According to sources, the Industrial Area Remand Prison had prepared to receive the suspects, but they were eventually released on bail. The DCI has confirmed that most of the suspects who had not turned up in court had already presented themselves as directed.
On Tuesday, Kimosop's lawyer requested the court to give him more time to present his client for plea-taking, citing that Kimosop had travelled outside the country. However, the court's bail terms remain the same, and Kimosop will have to present himself for plea-taking immediately after landing in Nairobi.
Kimosop is accused of conspiring with the directors of Italian company CMC Di Ravenna to defraud taxpayers in the construction of Kimwarer Dam. The charges read that between December 17, 2014, and September 27, 2018, Kimosop and others allegedly conspired to engage in a scheme to defraud the government of $244,422,163 (Sh25 billion) in respect of Kimwarer multipurpose dam.
