10 banks linked to NYS, Ruaraka scandals under probe

Investigations into the National Youth Service (NYS) and Ruaraka scandals have now shifted to 10 banks.

Detectives are probing how millions of shillings were wired into the suspects’ bank accounts and withdrawn almost immediately.

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“In the NYS saga, we saw instances of monies to the tune of Ksh.100million being withdrawn within two days,” Director of Public Prosecution Noordin Haji said.

In the Ruaraka land scam, the DPP cited amounts of up to Ksh.250million being withdrawn within three days.

Part of the Ksh.1.5billion paid to Afrison Export Import Limited and Huelands Limited, as compensation for the 13.5acre piece of land in Ruaraka, is stashed outside the country.

“Some of the money has gone to Mauritius. We are insisting that we need a thorough investigation so that the case is complete,” the DPP said.

This has raised eyebrows in different quarters particularly because two public institutions; Ruaraka Secondary School and Drive Inn Primary School are built on the land.

The ten banks are on the spot for not alerting the Central Bank of Kenya over the suspicious incidents.

Two years ago, CBK had instructed banks to flag any unusual transactions and require account holders to disclose the source and destination of withdrawals exceeding Ksh.1million.

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“Is there something happening in regards to the banks? They also need to be put to account,” Senate Majority Leader James Orengo said.

Appearing before the Senate Legal Affairs Committee on Wednesday, the DPP responded saying his office has set up a team to look into the matter.

He intimated that detectives from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) and the National Intelligence Service (NIS) are closing in on bank managers and tellers linked to the scam.

“My conclusion is that there must have been a conspiracy between them and the public officials involved in corruption,” Haji told the committee.