Youth Fund Scandal: Businessman Mukuria Ngamau Jailed for 27 Years or Pay Sh720 Million Fine

A suspect accused of defrauding the Youth Enterprise Development Fund (YEDF) of Sh180 million was on Thursday sentenced to 27 years in jail.

Mukuria Ngamau and his company Quorandum Company Limited, where he is the director, were found guilty of five counts of conspiracy to commit an economic crime, unlawful acquisition of public property and making false documents.

Milimani Chief Magistrate Douglas Ogoti ordered Ngamau to pay a fine of Sh720.8 million or serve a 27-year jail sentence in default. The court dismissed his appeal for a non-custodial sentence, saying the sentence is dictated by Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Act.

Ngamau had been charged alongside his wife Doreen Waithera, who was acquitted of the charges after she entered into a plea bargaining with the the prosecution.

During an inquiry into the Youth Fund scandal, parliament's Public Investment Committee (PIC) heard that two multi-million-shilling contracts were awarded through single sourcing contrary to public procurement regulations.

Ngamau admitted that he executed the disputed payment where Quorandam Limited was to provide consultancy services for an ICT strategy design within a period of seven days for Sh65.9 million. In the second contract, the company was to provide consultancy services on specifications of the software to be used in managing operations at YEDF for Sh114.9 million.

After securing the second contract, Ngamau told members of the committee that he paid Sh115 million to an American national identified as Donnie Collins Reeves for part of the work.

A search of Reeves' details online by the MPs led to the discovery of an obituary of an American national who died at the age of 61. Ngamau told the committee that he had never met Reeves despite sending him millions of shillings through his Chase Bank account.

Detectives later established that Ngamau made several withdrawals from the fund and transferred the money to personal accounts of persons closely related to him, including his wife and mother Tabitha Wanjiku Ngamau.