By ADEN KIPRUTO
Defence lawyer Lewis Kanyoko has accused a prosecution witness of failing to properly account for the Sh51 million cited in the charge sheet against his client in a high-profile fraud case before a Nairobi court.
The witness, Lydia Nyagala, a former employee of Golden Key Travel Consultants Limited, was put to task during the hearing of a case in which businessman Brian Reeves Obare faces three charges: obtaining money by false pretences contrary to Section 313 of the Penal Code involving Sh51.2 million; acquisition of proceeds of crime under the Proceeds of Crime and Anti-Money Laundering Act linked to the purchase of a Land Rover Discovery; and personation contrary to Section 382 of the Penal Code for allegedly posing as a Canadian consular official.
Milimani Principal Magistrate Paul Mutai is presiding over the case.
During cross-examination, Kanyoko questioned Nyagala’s employment status, the company’s registration details, the accuracy of financial figures and the authenticity of documents produced in court. He challenged her to explain how the complainant company could claim transactions allegedly made between 2021 and 2022 when records showed Golden Key was not registered before January 2024, a discrepancy he said cast doubt on the entire prosecution case.
The defence also questioned Nyagala’s identity after a photograph allegedly showing her misrepresenting herself as “Nancy Nanjira” in I&M Bank account opening forms was produced in court. Kanyoko argued that if Nyagala faked her identity and still managed to open an account, the integrity of the bank’s verification process would come under serious scrutiny.
When asked to provide proof of refunds allegedly made to clients, Nyagala said that responsibility lay with the investigating officer. She also told the court she served as a human resource manager through experience rather than formal academic qualifications.
Earlier, Nyagala testified that more than Sh51 million was paid to an individual who posed as a Canadian Embassy official to process visas that never materialised, leaving dozens of hopeful travellers stranded, arrested at airports or turned back during transit.
She said Golden Key engaged Obare between March 2022 and November 2023 after he was introduced as a counsellor attached to the Canadian Embassy. Clients allegedly paid Sh450,000 each, with deposits of Sh124,500, while passports and supporting documents were forwarded to him for processing.
According to Nyagala, none of the applicants ever travelled to Canada, and later investigations established that Obare had never worked for any embassy and that the visas issued were invalid.
She said payments totalled about Sh82 million, but only Sh51.2 million could be supported by documents, with about Sh34 million refunded to clients before the matter was reported to Lang’ata Police Station and taken over by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations.
