After playing hide and seek games with criminal police investigators, the woman accused of linking Mining and Blue Economy Cabinet Secretary Hassan Joho and his brother, Abubakar Ali Joho, to drug trafficking and theft of Ksh 40 billion has been identified.
Police officers have revealed the woman’s identity and connected the two to the theft of containers from the Kenya Ports Authority (KPA).
On October 3, she will appear in court and enter a plea to the charges.
Prosecutors argue that the false claims circulated on social media could have far-reaching consequences, not only tarnishing the reputation of the accused but also affecting their professional and personal lives.
Mombasa Senior Resident Magistrate David Odhiambo had ordered that the suspect, Matilda Maodo Kinzani, appear before her court to plead to the charges.
She has asked the court to lift the arrest warrant against her through her lawyer, Michael Oloo, after she failed to appear in court to enter a plea to the charges.
When Mr. Oloo informed the court that his client was unwell and unable to appear before the court, police suspected foul play.
The magistrate set aside the warrant of arrest and ordered her release on a bond of Ksh 700,000 with one similar surety with an alternative of Ksh 300,000 cash bail.
According to police, the suspect is a senior employee of Grain Bulk Handlers Ltd., now known as Bulk Stream.
According to court documents, Kinzani, in her statement to police, has stated that she is an employee of the company, having worked as a senior employee for several years.
She also told the police that the information she posted on her social media platforms came from a reliable source and that, at the time she posted it on WhatsApp, she didn’t intend to harm Joho’s or his brother’s reputation.
Kinzani is facing charges of publishing false information under Section 23 of the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act.
The police detectives believe the woman is the prime suspect, who used her WhatsApp to share information deemed false and victimising to the character of Joho and his elder brother. This occurred immediately following Joho’s nomination for the Cabinet Secretary position.
As investigations continue, authorities are expected to dig deeper into the source of the claims Kinzani made as they aim to establish whether she acted alone or as part of a coordinated campaign.
