Taj Mall Bribe Case Set for July 24
Court Orders July 24 Hearing for Nairobi County Officer Accused of Soliciting Sh6.5M Taj Mall Bribe Despite Bid to Delay Case
The Anti-Corruption Court in Nairobi has ordered that the graft case against Nairobi County rates officer Dennis Paul Manoti, accused of soliciting a Sh6.5 million bribe from the owner of Taj Mall, proceed without delay on July 24.
The matter was scheduled for hearing today before Milimani Principal Magistrate Felix Kombo, but defence lawyer Evans Ondieki sought an adjournment, arguing that he had filed a High Court application seeking to terminate the case. He also claimed the prosecution had not supplied him with all witness statements necessary for trial preparation.
However, Magistrate Kombo rejected the adjournment request, insisting there was no justification to push the case beyond the August 8 General Election, and directed that the hearing proceed on the set date.
Manoti Accused of Soliciting Millions to Facilitate Land Transfer
Manoti, a deputy accountant in the Nairobi County Government Rates Department, is facing three counts of corruption, all tied to alleged bribe demands made to Taj Mall owner Ramesh Chandra Govin.
According to the charge sheet:
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On November 28, at City Hall, Manoti allegedly demanded Sh6 million to facilitate transfer changes on LR No. 20273 from Sigma Ltd to Taj Mall Ltd.
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He is further accused of soliciting an additional Sh500,000 for the same purpose.
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In a separate count, he is accused of receiving Sh100,000 from another complainant, Peter Kebaso, to push similar transfer changes on the property.
Manoti has denied all charges and is currently out on Sh250,000 cash bail.
How the Alleged Fraud Was Exposed
The prosecution told the court that Govin had been paying land rates since purchasing the 4.2-acre Taj Mall property in 2009. However, when he recently sought official statements from the City Hall rates office, he was repeatedly frustrated.
This prompted him to hire a private land investigator, who uncovered alleged irregularities in the handling of the land’s rate records—leading to the corruption complaint and subsequent arrest of Manoti.
