Members Accuse Directors Of Stealing Sh. 5 Million From Group

The South Rift group, consisting of 200 members had raised the money with intended to be used to buy a piece of land.

Seven counts of theft and misappropriation of funds from were brought against the accused directors.

The eight were all accused of conspiring to steal Sh3,243,141 from the group's bank accounts between December 20, 2021, and April 20, 2022.

They were accused of stealing the funds while feigning interest in a nonexistent enterprise.

An additional accusation of stealing Sh40,600 from the organization's account during the same time period was brought against four of them.

Three were accused of taking Sh701, 620 from the accounts on a different charge, while one of whom was accused on two further counts of stealing Sh430,000 from the organization during the same time period.

Through their attorneys, the accused pleaded not guilty to all counts and asked the court to grant them bond releases but the prosecutors were against releasing them on bond.

Prosecutors said in a sworn affidavit from investigator Daniel Ouma that the police could not ensure the safety of the accused because angry members of the organization were still at war with them.

Additionally, Ouma stated that the three were likely to obstruct the testimony of witnesses, noting that conflicts had arisen among the directors, who were probably going to push members to engage in physical conflict.