Police want Nick Mwendwa to account for Sh500m

FKF President Nick Mwendwa. FKF has received Sh430 million from the government since 2019. [Collins Kweyu, Standard]

Suspended Football Kenya Federation President Nick Mwendwa was last evening being questioned by police at the Directorate of Criminal Investigations headquarters, along Kiambu road.

Mwenda was arrested at noon yesterday by officers from the elite DCI Special Service Unit and taken to the headquarters for questioning.

FKF CEO Barry Otieno told the Saturday Standard that the reason for his arrest had not been revealed.

Mwendwa was driving in Ridgeways area on Kiambu Road at around mid-day when he was stopped and arrested.

“His (Mwendwa’s) vehicle was blocked by DCI officers who bundled him into their car and sped off,” Mr Otieno said.

Sources at the DCI Serious Crimes Unit last evening told the Saturday Standard that Mwendwa was required to give details of how the federation had spent Sh500 million from the government.

“We want him to account for the money, which from the documents available was received by the federation,” said a senior officer familiar with the investigation.

At the time of filing this story at 5.30 pm , Mwendwa was still being interrogated. His arrest came one day after he was freed by a Nairobi court, which ordered the closure of a file in which the DCI had sought to detain him for 14 days to complete investigations .

On Thursday, Milimani Senior Principal Magistrate Wandia Nyamu also ordered that Nick Mwendwa’s Sh4 million cash bail be refunded to him.

On November 17, Ms Nyamu had given the State seven days to file charges against Mwendwa, failure to which, he would be released unconditionally.

Mwendwa was arrested on November 12 and questioned by the DCI over allegations of questionable use  of funds.

At the time of his arrest, Mwendwa had vowed to stay put at the federation despite its take-over by a caretaker committee amid a probe into use of FKF funds.

The federation has received Sh430 million from the government since 2019, with the usage of the funds now under investigation.

The 15-member FKF caretaker committee, led by retired judge Aaron Ringera, will operate for six months, starting November 11.