Mombasa tycoon’s Sh2.3b tax case stalls

[ad_1] A tax evasion case involving an Asian tycoon Mohamed Bachoo stalled last week after defence lawyers and the prosecution failed to agree on how to proceed. Bachoo, a prominent Mombasa businessman was charged late last year with evading taxes worth Sh2.3 billion. Bachoo, the director of Karibu Mchele Commodities was released on a cash bail of Sh2million after denying all three charges of tax evasion lodged against him. He appeared again last week before Mombasa resident magistrate Rita Amwayi for a pre-trial conference that never kicked off. Magistrate Amwayi was forced to reschedule the hearing date after DPP had failed to submit his response as had earlier been ordered by the court. Bachoo’s defence lawyer Gikandi Gibuini had demanded that DPP should supply his client with all relevant documents to the case including exhibits ahead of the pre-trail conference. According to court files, Bachoo has been under investigation by KRA over tax evasion claims. He is said to have committed the offense over the last three years from 2015. In the first count, the tycoon was charged that while trading as Karibu Mchele Commodities, he jointly with others not before court defaulted to remit Sh1.1billion to the taxman in 2017. He also denied another charge of failing to pay another Sh136million as tax in 2016. Bachoo further denied a third count of failing to remit Sh906 million as income tax to the taxman in 2015. The magistrate directed that the DPP should submit his response to the court within the next two weeks before the next date of the pre-trail conference. [ad_2] Source link