This archive report was first published on 8 September 2019.
On June 12, a Tanzanian national, Hussein Masoud Eid Bakari, was sentenced to 30 years in prison for drug trafficking. However, the trial was marred by allegations of mishandling by Mombasa Principal Magistrate Edgar Kagoni.
According to the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) Noordin Haji, Kagoni mishandled exhibits in the trial, which led to the loss of 10.002 kilogrammes of heroin seized from the convict.
On December 4, 2018, Kagoni allegedly allowed the court assistant, Onesmus Momanyi, to take control of the produced exhibits, despite the DPP's request to store them with the police due to the sensitivity of the matter.
On August 8, Chief Magistrate Evans Makori initiated an investigation into the matter, which led to Kagoni's arrest on September 7, 2019.
Along with Kagoni, three other court officials, including Momanyi, Abdalla Awadh Abubakar, and Lawrence Thoya Bayan, were also arrested on allegations of stealing narcotics valued at Sh30,066,000 and Sh600,000 in cash from the exhibits store.
Lawyers for the detained magistrate have questioned the rationale for the arrest, saying some of the allegations by the DPP are legally untenable.
