Court directs State, Standard to discuss verdict on 2006 raid

State agents raided Standard Group offices at the Nairobi's I&M building and the printing press along Likoni road on Wednesday 1st March 2006. [File, Standard]

The High Court has directed the Standard Group PLC and the government to discuss whether to adopt a judgement that found that the State violated the company's rights following a raid ordered by former Internal Security Minister John Michuki.

Justice Teresiah Matheka on Wednesday told the parties' lawyers to decide whether the court should go ahead and determine how much Standard Group should be paid for the destruction of property.

In the case, the media house is seeking Sh67 million plus interest since 2006 when the case was filed. On the night of March 2, 2006, armed men raided I&M Bank Tower in Nairobi and the company's printing press on Likoni Road. At about 12.15am, they destroyed KTN's equipment and shut down the transmission.

At the I&M, Standard Group's legal officer Jesse Waigwa narrated how they disabled the CCTV and stormed the sixth floor, harassed security and staff, before gaining the KTN's operation room. He said they were in orange jackets marked QRU and had their faces concealed by hoodies.

"Having completed that mission, they moved to the 17th Floor where the 2nd Plaintiff had its studios. Here, they harassed the staff on duty, beat them up and proceeded to vandalise and destroy the equipment they dismantled part of the equipment which they removed and took away with them. Through this thuggish conduct, they illegally and unlawfully disabled and switched off the KTN transmissions and the station," narrated Waigwa in his affidavit filed in court.

At the same time, there was another group of police officers who raided Standard's premises at Likoni Road. They broke down doors, gained access to the printing press and seized several items.

Here, Waigwa said employees were ordered to lie down, as the hooded men vandalised the printing press and other machinery. "They seized one of the vehicles, registration Number KAR 235X, which they unlawfully used to ram onto the grill door leading to the printing area, thereby breaking it down," he continued.

Artur Margaryan and Artur Sargsyan. [File, Standard]

According to Waigwa, the officers were acting on instructions from Michuki, who then metaphorically explained the raid by saying, 'If you rattle a snake, it will bite you.'

At the time, the former minister alleged that the raid was necessitated to ensure national security. Waigwa further narrated that the then government spokesperson claimed that Standard Group's journalists had been allegedly bribed to run a series of stories over a saga that had befallen then President Mwai Kibaki's administration over cocaine seized in Mombasa.

At the heart of the scandal and what infuriated the government was the story of Artur Margaryan and his brother Artur Sargasyan. The Artur brothers entered the country on December 13, 2005 and were deported on June 9, 2006.

Waigwa said Michuki had promised another round of raids. On the other hand, the government argued that the issue had been settled by Justice Ngugi, who ordered Sh 5 million compensation on October 17, 2013. The case will be mentioned on January 21, 2026.