Lands and Housing Cabinet Secretary Alice Wahome is among those targeted in a probe into the ownership of a Sh600 million land in Nairobi.
A team of detectives from land fraud unit at the DCI headquarters visited the lands ministry on Wednesday June 5 as part of the probe into the claims.
They asked for a number of documents regarding the land in question as part of the probe.
This is after Wahome wrote to a commercial bank warning the lender that it may have relied on a disputed title to advance a Sh308 million loan.
The land in question is situated opposite Loreto Convent school, along the junction of 4th Ngong Avenue and Bishops Road, in Upperhill area and measures 0.2726 hactares (approximately one acre).
The property registered as Nairobi Block 27/508 (formerly L.R No. 209/18572 and formerly No. 209/508 I.R 5670) is being claimed by two rivals; Hassan Yusuf Abdille and International Homes Limited.
International Homes Limited is linked to a Makueni politician.
On May 23, 2024 CS Wahome wrote to the Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) Group CEO Pual Russo alleging an existence of a forged title that was used by Mr. Abdille to secure the bank loan.
However, in a turn of events, Abdille through his lawyers, has written to the Director of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Mohamed Amin demanding that the Lands CS is probed for abuse of office and aiding fraud.
The letter dated June 4, 2024 and marked received at the DCI headquarters on June 5, 2024, has questioned the powers of the minister to determine the ownership of the land.
Abdille through lawyer Victor Rapando has questioned the criteria used by the Lands CS to determine the legitimate owner of the plot yet in her own letter to the bank, she had acknowledged that she hasn’t seen documents from his client or listened to his side.
“Its outrageous that a whole Cabinet Secretary would conclude that a party’s land ownership document as illegitimate and at the same time purport that a concerned party that has been condemned unheard has been summoned to present his version of facts,” lawyer Rapando wrote.
Abdille claims that CS Wahome and the Ministry of Lands is for unexplained reasons openly aiding International Homes Limited to defraud and deprive him interest over ownership of the land without regard to the constitution.
“Our client further invites your office to investigate the conduct of the Cabinet Secretary and her office and establish her culpability relative to the complaint of abuse of office, fraud, unlawful deprivation of private and conflict of interest, which we hereby lodge,” Rapando states.
Abdille insists that he validly purchased the property from the previous owner Mohamed Ibrahim Abdulah who had equally purchased the same from Abdur Mohamed Hussin, Imran Mohamed Salim and Iram Shahzad Ibrahim.
On June 5, 2023 he charged the property to I&M Bank Limited; which charge was discharged on the 23rd February, 2024.
And on 25th March, 2024 he legally and validly charged the parcel to KCB Bank Kenya Limited to secure a facility of Sh308 million after due diligence and confirmation of ownership documents by the banks.
Equally Abdille had attached documents from the Nairobi City County Government showing rectors of him paying land rates.
However, in her letter, CS Wahome insisted that the Chief Land Registrar had already placed a caution on Abdille’s title documents warning the bank that it risked exposure.
“Any such lending you will appreciate would involve thorough due diligence enquiries in the property including physical visit for valuation by a prudent lender like yourselves.
We trust this was indeed undertaken failure to which, kindly note should your bank have advanced any such facilities on the basis of the alleged title then you stand extremely exposed,” she said.
The CS copied the letter to DCI boss Amin, her PS Nixon Korir, Chief Land Registrar, law firm of Macharia, Mwangia & Njeru advocates and Kathiani MP Robert Mbui.
Wahome said that received a complaint from International Homes Limited after a search at Ardhi House revealed that the property was now in the name of Hassan Yussuf Abdille.
“This triggered the complaint by the company to my office and thereby necessitating internal investigations as to the authenticity of the alleged title since as far as the company is concerned, it does not know the said Hassan Yussuf Abdille, has never dealt with him and strongly believes that his title is fake or fraudulently acquired.”
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