Advocate charged with stealing Sh7.59 million from client and forging bank documents

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Paul Kimani Mwangi, an advocate who, according to the prosecution, last renewed his practising certificate in 2023, has been charged with stealing from a client and forging bank documents.

He appeared before Makadara Resident Magistrate Wandia Nyamu on Monday, April 20, and pleaded not guilty to the charges.

According to court particulars, Mwangi stole Sh7,590,000 from Joseph Kimani Muchiri, a land buyer, on diverse dates between June 13, 2023, and March 4, 2025.

He is also charged with forging a document on October 11, 2024.

Mwangi is alleged to have forged two fake KCB Bank credit advice slips for a Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) domestic tax payment, each amounting to Sh800,040.

The documents purported to show income tax collection on behalf of Muchiri, the buyer of two parcels of land: LR No. 8226/70 and LR No. 8226/73, located in Nairobi.

Court documents indicate that between June 13, 2023, and March 4, 2025, Muchiri transferred a total of Sh38,590,000 to the account of Paul Kimani Mwangi & Co. Advocates as payment for the said parcels of land. Mwangi was to facilitate the transaction on behalf of Muchiri.

He allegedly paid Sh31 million to the land seller, prompting the revocation of the land sale agreement between Muchiri and the landowner. Upon inquiry, the complainant learned that the accused had not remitted the full amount. Mwangi had allegedly pocketed Sh7.59 million.

Further inquiries revealed that Mwangi was not a duly practising advocate of the High Court, contrary to how he had presented himself.

When Mwangi realised his alleged scheme had been uncovered, he reportedly disappeared, complicating efforts by the complainant and authorities to trace and recover the missing funds.

Investigations involved the extraction of bank statements covering the relevant period, followed by a detailed audit. Relevant receipts were preserved as exhibits. 

Defence counsel informed the court that her client is indeed an advocate of the High Court and that he had already initiated discussions with the complainant, with whom he shared a prior mutual relationship, in a bid to explore an amicable resolution.

The investigating officer, Corporal Dennis Owino, filed an affidavit opposing the accused’s release on cash bail.

He described Mwangi as a flight risk, citing his lack of a known fixed place of abode and the fact that his mobile phone was frequently switched on and off, rendering him unreachable.

State counsel Moureen Mwenesa supported the opposition, noting that Mwangi’s practising certificate was last renewed in 2023. She added that his mobile number was often unreachable and that, without an active licence, it was difficult to verify his status as a practising advocate.

Mwenesa further stated that Mwangi’s permanent residence remains unknown, as he had relocated from the address previously known to the complainant.

Efforts by the complainant to contact Mwangi’s family members proved unsuccessful; the family reportedly indicated they could not reach him either.

The court heard that Mwangi had closed his office at Post Bank House along Banda Street/Market Lane in Nairobi Central District in October 2024 and no longer maintained an operational practice known to the complainant.

During the period of the alleged transactions, he reportedly held no active practising certificate. The matter will be mentioned on April 29, when the cash bail and bond will be determined.