A city-based advocate has been charged for attempting to obtain Sh1.1 billion from a Chinese construction firm. The lawyer, Mr Stephens Kithi Ngombo who is a Mombasa resident, is facing two counts in which the State is accusing him of falsely receiving money in a land transaction deal. The charge sheet indicates that the suspect attempted to obtain the money from China Wuyi Kenya Limited in the pretense of selling the firm a plot belonging to Tourism Finance Corporation.
The criminal charges against the advocate arise from a civil dispute that has also been filed against him. The lawyer attempted to obtain Sh1.09 billion from the company on July 30, 2016. He is further accused of obtaining Sh20 million from the company.
Offence chargedย
The court heard the case on April 18, 2017, Mr. Ngombo obtained the money by falsely pretending that it was part payment to secure the land, but he pleaded not guilty to the two offences when he appeared before Senior Resident Magistrate Rita Amwayi.
Mr Ngombo had asked the court to postpone the plea-taking to allow for the conclusion of a High Court case he said he had filed. However, the magistrate declined to allow the request, noting that she had not been served with any High Court order stopping the advocate from pleading to the charges. He was granted a sh500, 000 cash bail with an alternative bond of Sh 2million with one surety of a similar amount. The case will be mentioned on May 17.
โThere is nothing tabled before me to enable this court to defer plea-taking,โ said the magistrate.
