ODPP appeals acquittal of Mike Sonko in KES 20 million graft case
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecution (ODPP) has announced its intention to appeal the acquittal of former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko in a KES 20 millioncase involving allegations of corruption and money laundering.
In a statement, the DPP expressed frustration with the ruling, claiming that the court relied on extraneous factors in its decision to acquit Sonko and the other accused individuals.
According to the DPP, the Magistrate who presided over the case made a number of errors in his application of the law.
The Magistrate is accused of relying on an outdated charge sheet from January 2020 in his determination that the charges were defective, despite the fact that a substituted charge sheet had been filed in September of the same year.
Additionally, the DPP claims that the Magistrate failed to consider the evidence presented by the prosecution and placed undue weight on the defense’s arguments, leading to the acquittal.
The DPP has called on the court to allow the appeal, quash the acquittal in its entirety, and find that the prosecution had established a prima facie case against the accused.
Senior Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions Christine Nanjala stated that the prosecution believes the accused individuals should be required to defend themselves with respect to all accounts in the case.
The allegations against Sonko, Antony Otieno Ombok (also known as Jamal), and ROG Security Limited center around a conspiracy to extort KES 20 million from the Nairobi County government in January 2019.
The case was dismissed by the Anti-Corruption Court on December 21, with Chief Magistrate Douglas Ogoti citing a lack of evidence and defective charges as the reasons for the acquittal.