A court ruled that a director of a tea company charged with forging a stamp and signature of a lawyer who had died 11 years ago to file returns at the state law office in a bid to remove four directors of the enterprise from office has a case to answer.
Milimani Law courts Senior Principal Magistrate Geoffrey Onsarigo directed Kirubi Kamau be put on his defence.
“After examining the evidence presented by the prosecution l find that there is humble evidence to warrant this court place the accused on his defence.”
Onsarigo directed Kamau defends himself on October 3 2024 for forging a signature and a stamp of the late Mburu Mbugua.
Kamau said he will give a sworn defence.
He added that he will be calling one witness.
“Your honour l give a sworn defence. I will be calling one witness,” Kamau told the court.
Onsarigo heard from the Registrar of Companies that it was discovered that the signature and stamps embossed on the forms for filing returns by Kamau had been forged.
Kamau has denied forging a stamp impression and signature of the late Mburu Mbugua (advocate) to allegedly deceive that four directors of Central Highland Tea Company Limited had resigned from leadership.
He is accused of forging affidavits of resignations of Meshack Kibunja Kaburi, Daniel Wanjie Waruingi, James Njukia Ihura and David Macharia Gichure from the leadership of Central Highland Tea Company Limited.
Kamau allegedly presented the four affidavits at the registrar of companies in June 27, 2019 purporting that they had been signed by the late Mburu Mbugua who had died in December 2008.
Onsarigo had heard from the family of the deceased lawyer Mburu Mbugua whose chambers were at Uganda House Nairobi died and was buried on December 18, 2008 at Ndenderu in Kiambu County.
While adducing evidence a Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) Officer Schola Mwaura attached to Central Police Station Nairobi who investigated the case told Onsarigo in her testimony that the accused appended his signature and indicated his cellphone number on the returns he filed at the company registry at the State Law Office.
Mwaura presented a death certificate of the deceased lawyer (Robert Mburu Mbugua) and the obituary published in her evidence in the case as proof that the advocate had passed on.
The officer said she delved deep into the investigations and sought relevant information from the Law Society of Kenya (LSK) to establish whether Mburu had appointed any advocate to take over its operations in the event of his absence.
A report from LSK confirmed that the deceased lawyer had not appointed any lawyer to act on his behalf when he was absent.
Mwaura the 14th prosecution witness in the forgery case testified that she established that signatures appended on the four affidavits of the directors were forgeries also.
She told the court the signature were confirmed to be a forgery a documents examiner.
Kamau and the four complainants were all directors at the Murang’a County based tea company.
He has denied 20 counts of forgery and uttering of forged documents and accused the police of maliciously prosecuting him, an averment Ms Mwaura denied she “the commenced the case against him in pursuit of justice”.
Mwaura testified that a report of the forgeries of June 11 2019 was made at the Central Police Station by Ihura after his Secretary Jacinta Mwaura discovered the resignation documents filed at the registrar of companies.
Mwaura who also testified said she was secretary of Ihura , said she sent an email via the e-citizen to check the status of the tea company but to her surprise she was informed her boss had resigned.
The magistrate heard that the four directors had not resigned from the leadership of the tea company and were utterly shocked to learn of their exit from the company unknowingly.
The signatures of the four Kaburi, Waruingi, Ihura and Gichure appended on the affidavits were taken to documents examiner and it was established the they had been forged.
Kamau has denied that on June 11, 2019 at an unknown place within Nairobi County jointly with others not before the court with intent to deceive forged stamp impression and signature used on affidavits alleged to have been sworn by messrs Kaburi, Waruingi, Ihura and Gichure directors of Central Highland Tea Companies Limited.
The charges stated the affidavits were sworn before Mburu Mbugua, an Advocate and a Commissioner for Oaths.
The accused denied he forged the resignations affidavits of the four directors.
He has also denied he uttered the alleged false documents on June 27, 2019 at the registrar of companies.
The charges state that Kamau knowingly and fraudulently uttered the forged affidavits resignation letters for the four as directors of the tea factory.
Kamau is out on bond.
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