Former Migori Governor Okoth Obado and his co-accused have been cleared in a KSh235 million corruption case after a Nairobi court approved a deal that led to the dropping of all charges.
In a statement on May 15, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) said the Milimani Anti-Corruption Court adopted the agreement as its judgment, effectively clearing Obado, his four children, and 13 other accused persons.
According to the ODPP, the deal required the accused to forfeit assets valued at approximately KSh235.6 million, more than three times the KSh73.4 million they had been accused of misappropriating from Migori County.
Senior Principal Magistrate C.N. Ondieki ruled that the plea agreement met all legal and constitutional thresholds, allowing the court to formally adopt it and terminate the case.
“Wherefore, this court adopted the Plea Agreement as a judgment of this court. It follows that all the charges are deemed withdrawn against all accused persons,” the magistrate ruled.
Assets Worth Over KSh235 Million Surrendered as Court Upholds Settlement Deal
The ODPP said the court dismissed objections lodged by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC), noting that the agency had participated in the negotiations and failed to demonstrate any illegality in the process.
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“Having embraced the negotiation leading to the Plea Agreement and having participated fully, it seems to me that EACC’s main point of departure is driven more by the terms of the Plea Agreement than legality thereof,” the court said.
Further, the court noted that EACC had not presented substantive material to support its claims of impropriety, reinforcing the validity of the settlement process.
The accused persons, initially charged with stealing KSh73.4 million from Migori County between 2013 and 2017, agreed to surrender assets valued at approximately KSh235.6 million, alongside two motor vehicles.
The forfeited assets include high-value properties and commercial developments spread across Nairobi and Migori.
Among the properties handed over to the State are the Loresho Ridge House valued at KSh40 million, Sunrise Centre Commercial Block in Suna East worth about KSh88 million, and two five-storey residential buildings estimated at KSh57.6 million.
The settlement also covers apartments and other residential investments, as well as two Toyota Land Cruiser vehicles.
Obado Graft Case From Charges to Settlement Deal
The case against former Migori Governor Okoth Obado began after investigations showed that county funds may have been misused between 2013 and 2017.
Prosecutors alleged that about KSh73.4 million was taken from public coffers through companies linked to Obado, his children, and close associates.
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This led to charges in 2021, in which Obado and others were accused of offenses including money laundering, conflict of interest, and unlawful acquisition of public property.
Investigations further claimed that some of the money was used to buy expensive properties and to cover personal expenses, including payments made abroad.
While probes examined payments running into hundreds of millions, and even exceeding KSh1.9 billion, in suspected irregular procurement, the criminal case focused on a smaller portion directly tied to the accused.
The matter dragged on in court for several years while the government also pursued recovery of assets believed to have been bought using the funds, before it was eventually settled through a deal approved by the court
