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Former CS Rashid Echesa charged in Sh1.5bn extortion case

Former Sports Cabinet Secretary Rashid Echesa.

By Joseph Ndunda | 19 Apr 2024

Echesa and his accomplice Joseph Waswa were also charged with attempting to extort by threats after allegedly demanding Sh1.5 billion from Barasa

Former Sports Cabinet Secretary Rashid Echesa was on Friday charged with conspiracy to defraud after allegedly demanding Sh1.5 billion from Kakamega Governor Fernandes Barasa in order to drop a case of kidnap against him.

Echesa is said to have falsely accused the county chief of kidnap.

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He is also facing a similar charge after allegedly demanding Sh250 million from the governor to drop the same charge after falsely accusing the governor of kidnapping him on March 18, 2024.

Echesa and his accomplice Joseph Waswa were also charged with attempting to extort by threats after allegedly demanding Sh1.5 billion from Barasa while threatening him with criminal charges if he did not give him the cash.

He is accused of committing this offence on diverse dates between March 18-26 2024 at an unknown place in Kenya.

Echesa and Waswa were accused of conspiring to defraud Barasa on different dates between December 2023 and March 2024 while purporting they could hand over a gadget containing inappropriate pictures of the governor.

The pictures were released on social media last month and the two allegedly went on demanding money failure to which they would unleash more inappropriate pictures of the governor.

Echesa is separately charged with obtaining money by false pretenses after defrauding Barasa of Sh10 million while claiming he was in a position to delete inappropriate pictures and video clips of the governor. He is accused of receiving the money at the Sagret Hotel on December 3, 2023.

Waswa is separately charged with two counts of Cyber harassment contrary to section 27 (1) of the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act of 2018 after sending two WhatsApp messages to Barasa threatening to circulate more inappropriate pictures of him.

According to the court papers, the suspect is accused of sending this message to Barasa on Mach 19, 2024 knowing the information could detrimentally affect him.

They all denied the charges before Principal Magistrate Monica Maroro of the Kibera Law Courts.

Maroro said the anticipatory bond earlier given to Echesa by the high court will remain in force until Monday when she will set bail and bond terms for him.

Echesa had this week filed a petition at the high court seeking orders against the Director of Criminal Investigations and the Director of Public Prosecutions from arresting and charging him in court over the case.

Through lawyer Kirathe Wandugi, Echesa had alleged that he had reported a case of kidnap at the Karen police station which was not investigated and police intended to arrest and charge him instead of pursuing his abductors who he alleged had tortured him. But the court had not issued any orders.