Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) debt officer Ismail Ahmed Mire was arrested by the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) on March 16, 2023, for soliciting a Sh50,000 ($458) bribe. Mire had demanded the bribe to amend a wrongly accrued Value Added Tax (VAT) penalty.
The complainant reported Mire to EACC officials after being pressured into offering the bribe. EACC launched an investigation and took the complainant to Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUA) where Mire is based. The complainant then paid Mire Sh40,000 with a promise to pay the remaining amount once the VAT penalty was amended.
Mire was arrested by EACC officials as he was leaving the office. During a body search, he was found in possession of the bribe money.
Mire has been released on cash bail and is expected to appear in court on March 17, 2023. This is one of many cases of corruption in Kenya, with corrupt officials often demanding bribes from citizens to perform their duties. The EACC has been cracking down on such cases, arresting suspects and prosecuting them in court.
Three weeks before Mire’s arrest, EACC detectives arrested six members of the Embu Land Control Board for collectively demanding bribes during land transactions. The EACC has urged Kenyans to report any cases of corruption and not to engage in bribery or any form of corruption.
