Ex-Nairobi PC Davis Chelogoi convicted in Sh1.3 billion Lower Kabete land fraud

Former Nairobi Provincial Commissioner Davis Nathan Chelogoi has been convicted of five offences in a Sh1.3 billion land fraud case involving a 7.39-hectare parcel in Lower Kabete, after Principal Magistrate Dolphina Alego ruled that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.

The court relied on testimony from 19 witnesses, including officials from the State Department for Lands and Physical Planning, and said evidence had cast serious doubt on the authenticity of documents used to support Chelogoi's ownership claim. Co-accused Andrew Aseri Kirungu, a former Assistant Deputy Director of Lands Administration, was acquitted after the court found insufficient evidence that he knowingly took part in the alleged fraud.

The dispute traces back to businessmen Ashok Rupshi Shah and Hitenkumar Amritlal Raja, who told the court they bought the property from Liney Company Limited for Sh33 million under a sale agreement dated January 23, 2007. Their ownership claim had previously been upheld by the Environment and Land Court in 2022 and later affirmed by the Court of Appeal.

In his defence, Chelogoi maintained that former President Daniel arap Moi allocated him the land in January 1995 for Sh2.48 million and that his public duties delayed regularisation, leading to a title deed issued on June 4, 2021. The magistrate found he had not produced sufficient evidence to authenticate the alleged allocation or demonstrate a lawful chain of ownership, and a land registrar testified that signatures and stamp impressions attributed to her were not genuine.

The court also noted inconsistencies in internal tracking numbers and gaps in registry records, and observed that relevant correspondence and files inside the Ministry of Lands were either missing or destroyed.