A Nairobi court has released a 75-year-old woman accused of conspiring to defraud businesswoman Agnes Kagure Kariuki of a prime parcel of land valued at Sh200 million along Jogoo Road.
Chief Magistrate Rose Ndubi granted Ruth Wambui Kimani bond of Sh1 million or an alternative cash bail of Sh100,000, noting that her plea for lenient terms was justified given her age and medical condition.
Wambui is facing two counts — conspiracy to defraud and making a false document — contrary to the Penal Code.
According to the charge sheet, she allegedly conspired with another person, who is yet to be charged, to defraud Kagure of land parcel L.R. No. 209/4843/10 (I.R. No. 15372) measuring approximately 0.3252 hectares. The property is located along Jogoo Road in Nairobi.
The prosecution further claims that Wambui forged a national identity card in the name of Francis Kimani Mungai, purporting it to be a genuine document issued by the National Registration Bureau.
Through her lawyer, the accused urged the court to grant her favourable bail terms, saying she is a law-abiding citizen and the administrator of her late husband’s estate, which includes the disputed property.
The defence argued that she has already filed a suit before the Environment and Land Court (ELC) seeking to cancel the title deed registered in Kagure’s name, adding that the matter is a civil dispute being handled through proper legal channels.
Her counsel also told the court that Wambui suffers from diabetes and hypertension and is not a flight risk. She was reportedly arrested last Friday and released on a police bond of Sh100,000 before being arraigned.
The prosecution, however, objected to the request for lenient terms, arguing that the question of her being an administrator was irrelevant to the criminal case.
The prosecutor maintained that the land dispute pending before the ELC was separate from the ongoing criminal proceedings, emphasizing that the complainant had allegedly lost property worth Sh200 million.
The case will be mentioned on December 8 for pre-trial directions.
