A Kiambu court has allowed the withdrawal of a fraud case of a mother and her son in which they received 1.35 million shillings from a man after they purported they could sell him land in Kabete in Kiambu county in 2016.
Kiambu Senior Resident magistrate Ms Grace Omodho withdrew the case under section 204 of the CPC after the complainant agreed that he had received bulk payment from the accused which they had been paying in instalments.
Naomi Njeri Kibue and Antony Wahome had been arraigned before court on 28th June, 2019 and pleaded not guilty to the offence but pleaded not guilty to the charge.
The duo had been charged that on or before 16th November 2016 at an unknown place within the republic of Kenya, jointly with others not before court, with intent to defraud, conspired to defraud Martin Mabuya Njuguna of his 1,350,000 by falsely pretending they were in a position to sell him land parcel No.KABETE/LOWER KABETE/4040 measuring 0.0853Hectares valued at 5,000,000 a fact they knew to be false.
They however began negotiating outside court during which the accused started paying back the money in question in installments.
When the case was mentioned yesterday, they pleaded with the court to convert the cash bail that they had deposited in court of 200,000 shillings to be given to the complainant since that was the balance which they owed him.
The complainant told the court that the accused had paid him and that with the additional 200,000 shillings, they would have cleared the money they owed him.
For the prosecution, Ms. Viola Muthoni said she was aware of the payment as she had talked to the complainant who was willing to withdraw the case against the accused.
The same court handed over Hannah Njeri Kimani to Cpl Douglas Ongicho of Kamukunji police station in Nairobi county so that she is presented before Milimani courts in another fraud case she absconded hearing last year.
The accused was handed over after she failed to attend her case at Milimani court therefore compelling a warrant of arrest to be issued against her on 25th July 2019.
The court heard that on 20th June 2019, she had been arrested and charged for the offence of obtaining a total of 1,960,000 shillings from a complainant vide police case file no. 112/262/2019.
Later, the accused was released on bond by the court to enable her to continue with her case from home. That she failed to honour court proceedings and the court issued a warrant of arrest.
When the police were in the process of executing a warrant of arrest after she failed to appear in court for the hearing of her case, they received information that the accused had been arrested and was at the Kiambu police station in connection to another case.
When the magistrate asked her if she had anything to tell the court, she opposed being taken to Kamukunji police station. “I prefer to be held at Kiambu police station since I am indisposed and I am on medication. If you take me to Kamukunji my family will not be able to see me as they bring me my medication” she told the magistrate.
In response, the magistrate stated that she be handed over to Kamukunji in line with the court order.
By Lydia Shiloya
