1746 eacc
Detectives from the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) have arrested 11 officials in the Vihiga County Government.
In a statement on Thursday June 13, EACC said the 11 suspects are linked to the embezzlement of public funds amounting to Ksh17 million.
The county officials allegedly fleeced the millions through payments for non-existent works couched under the veil of constructing a Blood Transfusion Centre in Vihiga to help patients requiring blood.
“EACC has arrested 11 officials of Vihiga County Government, among them the Chief Officer for Medical Services Dr. Arnold Kimiyia Mamadi and Director of Procurement Godfrey Oyaro, to be charged before Kakamega Anti-Corruption Court this morning, at 9:00 am.
“The suspects allegedly embezzled public funds amounting to Kes.17 million through fraudulent payments for non-existent works in purported construction of a Blood Transfusion Centre in Vihiga to help patients requiring blood transfusion,” read the EACC statement in part.
According to EACC, the 11 suspects who spent the night at Kisumu Port Police Station, are currently being escorted from Kisumu to Kakamega Law Courts to take plea.
Meanwhile, the commission has ordered another suspect implicated in the scam who is on the run to report to the EACC Regional Office in Kisumu.
“The Commission ORDERS the 12th suspect, QS. Eugene Wandera Wamalwa, Principal Quantity Surveyor, Vihiga County, who is on the run to immediately report to EACC Regional Office in Kisumu, this morning, without fail,” EACC added.
Vihiga County was in 2023 flagged by the commission after their preliminary investigations showed that there were more than 40 ghost workers on the payroll.
The arrests come after EACC launched an investigation on alleged embezzlement of Sh1.2 billion by eight senior officials from Garissa County.
Also Read: EACC Goes After 8 County Officials Over Embezzlement of Sh 1.2 Billion.
