A Milimani Chief Magistrate’s Court was told how former Oki Trading Company Limited (OTCL) Managing Director, Honey Khatwani, allegedly diverted more than Sh356 million from the company into his personal accounts.
Two prosecution witnesses testified before Chief Magistrate Dolphina Alego, detailing how the ex-director allegedly manipulated company finances, exploited staff, and secretly established a competing business between 2020 and 2024.
The first witness, Jatin Aswani, said he joined OTCL in July 2023 but worked without proper documentation because Khatwani failed to process his work permit.
He told the court that although he signed an employment contract, he was never issued a copy, and that all staff were paid in cash despite requests for bank transfers.
Aswani further claimed he was forced to continue working under verbal threats from Khatwani, though he admitted he had no physical evidence to prove the intimidation.
The second witness, Sameer Kewal Ramani, who identified himself as a relative of the accused, detailed how company revenues were allegedly deposited directly into Khatwani’s Ecobank account in both Kenyan shillings and US dollars, as well as into his wife’s M-Pesa account, on the former director’s instructions.
Ramani testified that daily sales reports were shared on WhatsApp but were allegedly altered by Khatwani to conceal discrepancies.
“I would send Honey bank receipts via WhatsApp after depositing money in his personal accounts,” he told the court.
He further revealed that while still serving as OTCL’s managing director, Khatwani set up a rival entity, Galaxy Middle East Africa Limited, and redirected OTCL clients to the new company.
The court heard that an internal audit later uncovered the misappropriation of Sh356,711,806 between January 2020 and June 2024, allegedly through cheque deposits, falsified invoices, and manipulation of records.
Khatwani faces charges of stealing by a director, with prosecutors arguing he abused his position of trust to defraud the company.
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