EACC busts Sh10.5 million bribery ring at Treasury, arrests four officials
Those arrested include two Senior Pensions Officers, Henry Odhaimbo Otira and Catherine Muthoni Murage, Chief Clerical Officer Byrson Mark, and Wilkens Muhando Mugatsia, who was serving as an intern.
A group of four officers attached to the National Treasury’s Pensions Department has been arrested for allegedly running a bribery scheme that raked in more than Sh10.5 million over a two-year period.
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) confirmed the arrests on Thursday, July 17, after a two-month undercover probe prompted by mounting complaints from the public over alleged extortion by officers at the department.
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Those arrested include two Senior Pensions Officers, Henry Odhaimbo Otira and Catherine Muthoni Murage, Chief Clerical Officer Byrson Mark, and Wilkens Muhando Mugatsia, who was serving as an intern.
According to the EACC, the suspects were demanding bribes from members of the public in exchange for quicker access to services offered by the Pensions Department.
“It is alleged that the officials demand payment of bribes through a paybill account operated by one Wilkens Muhando Mugatsia, an intern at the Pensions Department in return for expedited services,” the Commission stated.
Preliminary findings revealed that the mobile money paybill account used to receive the payments was registered under the name of Mugatsia’s mother.
EACC investigators disclosed that the account had processed a total of Sh10,523,044, with each of the suspects reportedly receiving various amounts over time.
The suspects were processed at the Integrity Centre Police Station and will be held at Kilimani Police Station as investigations continue.
The Commission noted that the suspects ran a well-organised bribery ring within the department, preying on desperate Kenyans seeking help with pensions processing.
This case adds to a growing list of corruption incidents uncovered by the EACC in public offices.
In April, two officials from the Kakamega Civil Registration Department were arrested for allegedly soliciting bribes from applicants.
The two, one based at the Kakamega Huduma Centre and the other at the Civil Registration Office, are accused of demanding bribes to speed up the issuance of registration documents.
In a separate March incident, an official from the Lands Control Board was caught red-handed by EACC officers receiving a Sh70,000 bribe.
The Commission has intensified its use of sting operations to combat corruption in government offices, a strategy it says is yielding results.
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