This archive report was first published on 12 September 2019.
On May 1, 2019, businessman Jared Otieno and his co-accused were charged with alleged involvement in a fake gold syndicate. The case has been ongoing since then.
Now, Otieno and his co-accused, Philip Oroko and Ricky Ochieng, have listed several items in a certificate of urgency application to be released by the court. These items include furniture, electrical appliances, and kitchen equipment.
The three suspects claim that after their arrest and charge, they returned to their offices to salvage what was left for their business but found a vacant office. They argue that the seized items are not subject to the ongoing trial and should therefore be released.
They have specifically requested the Director of Criminal Investigation to release kitchen equipment picked by officers during the raid at their office on Kaputei Road in Kaputei Gardens in Nairobi.
According to the charges, Jared Otieno and 15 other suspects were accused of obtaining Ksh.300 million from Mr. Southorn Chanthavong, a director of Simuong Group Company, by pretending that they would sell him genuine gold. They denied the charges and were released on different cash bails ranging between Ksh.1.5 million and Ksh.500,000.
