Court dismisses Sh320m case against city politician

Embakasi East parliamentary aspirant Francis Mureithi. [File, Standard]

The High Court has thrown out a Sh320 million case filed against Francis Mureithi, a 2022 Embakasi East parliamentary aspirant.

Justice Freda Mugambi, in her judgment, found that Ethiopian businessman Helio Menkerios did not provide proof that he gave the money to Mureithi or a firm called Doc Find Limited.

The judge said there was no clear paperwork to show why and how the money was wired into the country. According to her, it was doubtful that Menkerios would inject such a vast amount of money without a clear record of what he was involved in or the business he intended to pursue.

“It is unreasonable to believe that a prudent investor would inject such a substantial amount of capital without clear documentation or understanding of the venture’s nature and the business opportunity. The plaintiff does not explain why no other accompanying documents such as tender applications, LPOs, invoices, or delivery notes have been provided to the court, nor does he address the serious allegations of illegality,” said Justice Mugambi.

She said that despite Menkerios’s claims that he had met the politician and discussed the alleged investment, the court could not determine what he was claiming to have invested in.

The judge stated that the Ethiopian businessman ought to have shown an agreement between himself and Wina Trading Limited, the firm to which he wired money and subsequently to Doc Find. The judge emphasized that the court could not assist Menkerios in an illegality.

“A review of the bank statements provided by the plaintiff at pages 37 through 43 reveals transactions relating to Wina Trading, the first third party. No clear connection between these transactions and any legitimate business arrangement involving the defendants is established. Although some RTGS debits were directed to the second defendant, no supporting documents for these payments were provided,” she said.

Justice Mugambi said that despite the LPOs issued to Doc Find seeming to be in order, the money flow was questionable.

“A close look at the purported agreements presented by the plaintiff shows that his obligation was to raise or contribute capital to be utilized in financing LPO obligations by the second defendant company. While the contracts appear to be properly executed, there is doubt about the transactions,” said Mugambi.

Mureithi was sued in 2020, four years after the alleged deal with Menkerios. He supported President William Ruto’s election in 2022.

Menkerios had demanded at least Sh630 million from Mureithi and Doc Find. In response, Mureithi argued that there was no evidence that Menkerios had wired the money to Doc Find or him. He added that despite Menkerios’ claim that he was injecting money into tenders awarded by the government to Doc Find, he could not provide the tender documents he was investing in.