Monday, December 19, 2022 – Embattled Sirisia MP John Waluke and his co-accused Grace Wakhungu have suffered a blow after three Court of Appeal judges allowed the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) to introduce new evidence in their ongoing case.
The evidence was obtained from a South African company that Waluke and Wakhungu claimed they used to import 40,000 tonnes of maize 19 years ago and an invoice for payment of Ksh.297 million from the National Cereals And Produce Board (NCPB).
Justices Hannah Okwengu, John Mativo and Weldon Korir delivered a significant ruling that may alter the proceeding of the case.
In their ruling, the three judges ruled that an application filed by the commission through its investigator, Kipsang Sambai, had met the criteria for admission of additional evidence by an Appellate court.
Fundamentally, this is the evidence used to convict Waluke and Wakhungu but has reportedly never been filed in the separate ongoing civil case at the High Court and now at the Court of Appeal.
In her June 2020 judgment, Chief Magistrate Elizabeth Juma ordered Waluke and Wakhungu, as directors of the accused company, to pay back the Ksh.297 million they had received.
They were sentenced to 67 years with an alternative fine of Sh1 billion, and with the new evidence, the sentence may be increased.
This comes even as Waluke pleaded with President William Ruto to help him secure freedom. At the Kakamega State Lodge on December 8, where Ruto was meeting leaders from the Luhya community, Waluke stated that former President Uhuru Kenyatta promised to help him but reneged on the pledge.
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