Joseph Gikonyo: Puzzle of KRA Officer's Sh650 Million Wealth from Sh100,000 Monthly Salary
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has commenced probe into how a Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) employee has managed to amass wealth of Sh650 million.
Joseph Chege Gikonyo, who is on Sh119, 617 monthly salary at the tax agency, accumulated wealth worth 650 million over a period 18 years, according to The Standard.
EACC detectives have interrogated the little known multi-millionaire over the source of his wealth. Gikonyo is said to have began working at the KRA in 1998 as junior tax collector with a starting monthly salary of 24,369, before rising to a manager in Eldoret.
Preliminary investigation by EACC show that Gikonyo earns a net salary of Sh119,617 per month as a manager and his declared assets are estimated at Sh61 million.
On July 20th, EACC filed an application at the High Court seeking to have Gikonyo's bank accounts frozen pending completion of investigation into his mysterious fortune.
His accumulative earnings in 20 years totals to Sh45 million, raising integral questions on how he got the Sh615 million balance of his wealth.
High Court Justice Hedwig Ong’udi has issued an order freezing his accounts and barring Gikonyo or any member of his family from selling their properties or assets until EACC'S probe into the source of his wealth is concluded.
Gikonyo has several properties worth millions in Nairobi, Mombasa, Kwale and Kilifi listed under his name. He says he is a tea farmer and accumulated his wealth through business ventures.
A detective said the tax officer has failed to produce documents to prove how he amassed the wealth from his businesses. He is also alleged to have been evading taxes despite being a KRA officer.
“Investigations revealed that at some point, Gikonyo and his wife were making huge cash deposits into their account in tranches of Sh200,000 almost daily. They could not explain the source of such deposits, which made us believe the amounts were proceeds of crime,” said James Kariuki, EACC’s forensic investigator.
“The assessment report revealed that they owed taxes totalling Sh38 million. They are involved in corruption offences of dishonesty and tax evasion and must be made to surrender to the Government whatever they have illegally acquired,” said Kariuki.