This archive report was first published on 14 October 2019.
On October 14, 2019, Justice Luka Kimaru of the High Court made a landmark ruling in a case involving billionaire Humphrey Kariuki's companies, Africa Spritis Limited and Wow Beverages Ltd.
The court ruled that the DCI had no authority to investigate alleged tax cheats, as this is a mandate reserved for the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) and the Asset Recovery Authority.
Justice Kimaru also upheld an order directing the unfreezing of several bank accounts of Mr Kariuki's companies, noting that the order to freeze the bank accounts was obtained illegally.
According to the judge, police investigators only have the power to ask for orders to access account details but not to ask for orders to freeze an account.
“The Evidence Act grants a police officer investigating an offence power to access to an account held in a bank for the purposes of investigations, but it does not grant the investigating officer power to apply for the seizure, freezing or the preservation of the contents in the account,” ruled Kimaru.
