Six former Homa Bay County officials charged in Ksh.348M office block corruption case

Six former Homa Bay County officials — along with a private company — have been charged over the alleged embezzlement of more than Ksh. 348 million meant for the construction of the Homa Bay County Assembly office block. The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions says the money was irregularly awarded to Hartland Enterprises Limited, and that key officials abused their positions to push the deal through. Those charged include former County Assembly Clerks Odhiambo Daniel Kaudo and Faith Adhiambo Apuko, former Public Works Quantity Surveyor Patrick Tonui, former Lands CEC Roseline Anyango Odhiambo, Public Health Officer James Mumali Oyukah, and Principal Nurse Mary Pauline Oduor. The group faces a long list of charges — among them abuse of office, failure to follow public finance laws, conflict of interest, and unlawful acquisition of public property. Prosecutors allege that Kaudo awarded the multimillion-shilling tender without competitive bidding, while Apuko authorised payments without proper documentation. Roseline Odhiambo is accused of approving construction without a valid allotment letter. Oyukah and Oduor — who are a couple — are accused of secretly benefiting from the tender through a company they direct. Together with Hartland Enterprises, they allegedly pocketed over Ksh. 66 million for work that prosecutors say was never done. All the accused pleaded not guilty before Chief Magistrate Mildred Obura at the Kisii Law Courts. The court set bond at thirty million shillings for most of the accused, with one surety each. Mary Oduor was granted a Ksh. 5 million bond with two sureties. The case will be mentioned again on February 2, 2026.