Five individuals have been arraigned before the Chief Magistrate’s Court in Mombasa in connection with a fraudulent land registration scheme involving a 12-acre parcel in Miritini, Mombasa County, valued at over sh.150 million.
The suspects, Edward Marenye Kiguru, Abubakar Madey, Joseph Matheka, Mahmoud Abdalla Mahmoud, and Mohamed Saleh Hassan, are accused of illegally transferring ownership of the land, originally registered to Kingorani Investment Limited in the early 1990s.
The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) launched investigations after a complaint was filed regarding the illegal eviction of employees from the property by the suspects.
“The suspects conspired to forge ownership documents and orchestrated the unlawful transfer of the land, with the intention of dispossessing the rightful owners,” said the DCI
The case file was forwarded to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, which approved charges against the suspects.
Following an extensive manhunt, private surveyor Edward Marenye Kiguru was arrested in Mombasa on April 7, 2025. Mahmoud Abdalla Mahmoud and Mohamed Saleh Hassan were later apprehended at a hotel in Nairobi while attempting to evade capture.
Another suspect, land administrator Joseph Matheka, was arrested at his Kangundo Road residence. He is believed to have worked with the group while serving in Kilifi County. The fifth suspect, Abubakar Madey, a registered physical planner, surrendered to authorities after a warrant for his arrest was issued.
All the accused pleaded not guilty and were granted a bond of sh.500,000 or a cash bail of sh.100,000 each, with one surety of the same amount.
The pre-trial mention is set for May 5, 2025.
