Alternatively, he has been sentenced to a total of eight years in prison following his conviction in the Oryx Filling Station scandal.
Former Samburu Governor Moses Kasaine Lenolkulal has been hit with a mandatory fine of Ksh83.4 million, a day after he was found guilty by the Anti-Corruption Court in Milimani alongside 12 others.
Alternatively, he has been sentenced to a total of eight years in prison following his conviction in the Oryx Filling Station scandal.
For the offence of conflict of interest, Lenolkulal was ordered to pay a fine of Ksh1 million or serve four years in jail.
For unlawful acquisition of public property, the former Governor and his co-accused were also ordered to pay Ksh1 million or serve four years in jail.
Former Samburu Governor Moses Lenolkulal during a past court session. /NTV
The Anti-Corruption Court in Nairobi made history by convicting and punishing Lenolkulal, marking the first time a former county governor has received such a verdict.
Lenolkulal has further been hit with a severe punishment, that is being barred from vying for public office for 10 years.
Chief Magistrate Thomas Nzyoki ordered Lenolkulal to pay a fine equivalent to twice the amount of the unlawfully acquired funds while co-accused persons are each required to pay Ksh1 million or serve a four-year imprisonment.
Lenolkulal was in 2019 charged with abuse of office and graft-related counts in relation to the Ksh84 million Oryx Filling Station scandal, where he, as the owner, supplied his county, leading to conflict and abuse of office.
Trial Magistrate Thomas Nzyoki ruled on Wednesday, August 28 that from the evidence produced in court by the ODPP, there is no doubt that Lenolkulal and his proxy Hesbon Ndathi were the ultimate beneficiaries of the public funds.
He found overwhelming evidence that Lenolkulal being the governor of Samburu at the time the offences were said to have been committed acted in a conflict of interest.
The magistrate relied on over 200 payment vouchers and lpos as evidence of Lenolkulal’s direct trading with the county, adding that private interest compromised his integrity.
“A public officers must taken keen interest in the affairs of his office. They should always adhere to principles of good governance. In law a governor stands prohibited from trading with his county government,” said Nzyuki.
He also faulted the county secretary who was the second accused person in the case for the role he played, stating that the county secretary signed and approved payments while aware Lenolkulal was the owner of the Oryx service station.
“The accounting office flatly lied on oath that they didn’t know Lenolkulal was the owner of Oryx. They shouldn’t have approved the payments to Oryx,” said the court.
The magistrate said the evidence adduced in court by the DPP led by prosecution counsel Wesley Namache was overwhelming in that Lenolkulal co-accused persons used their officers to improperly approve payments to Oryx.
Lenolkulal was charged with four counts of abuse of office and conflict of interest leading to the loss of Ksh84 million in public funds from the Samburu county government and was accused of using his company- Oryx service station- to supply petrol and diesel to the county government.
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) cited this as a clear case of conflict of interest, with the charge sheet showing Lenolkulal ‘knowingly acquired direct private interests in contracts between Oryx and Samburu county government for the supply of fuel”. The ex-county boss was charged alongside Hesbon Ndathi and eight others.
