Three individuals, including a government official employed at the government press printer, have been charged in a land fraud case. The accused, Leonard Clifford Wafula, along with two others, appeared before Milimani Principal Magistrate Ben Mark Ekhubi on April 17, 2025, where they pleaded not guilty to 18 different charges.
The first accused, Livingstone Ambayi, was arrested at a residential house located along Desai Road in the Ngara area. He faces 16 charges related to the possession of forged stamps and the creation of false documents. Ambayi is accused of possessing an instrument capable of making impressions of stamps bearing the names of various land registrars. These include C.S Maina, I.R Jeptanui, and V. Njane, whose names were allegedly used for fraudulent purposes. He was found with these instruments on March 28, 2025, during a raid at his residence.
Further charges against Ambayi include possession of an instrument capable of making impressions of stamps in the name of Mochonge O. Nicholus, a land administration officer, and two additional land registrars, A.W Mararia and C.N Kituyi. He is also charged with making false documents, as he was found in possession of two fake title deeds, serial numbers 29131 and 3894792, which were believed to be genuine government-issued documents. The title deeds were suspected to have been forged.
Additionally, Ambayi was found with public stores, including blank land title deeds with serial numbers 0009913 and 0009912, as well as a fee receipt from the State Department for Land and Physical Planning. These items were also suspected to have been unlawfully obtained or stolen. He was also found in possession of nine green cards with serial numbers related to the State Department for Land. These green cards were suspected of being stolen or illegally acquired.
Leonard Clifford Wafula, a printer at the government press printer, was charged with being unlawfully in possession of public stores. He was found with 113 International Certificates of Vaccination, which are issued by the Ministry of Health. These certificates were discovered in his house in Umoja, Nairobi. Wafula, who works in the SP Machine Book Production Section at the press, denied the charges in court.
The third accused, Paul Muigai Kimani, also faced charges of unlawfully possessing public stores. He was found with two file covers belonging to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), which he did not have permission to possess.
The defense team, led by lawyer Mwenda Muriungi, requested reasonable bail terms for the accused. After considering the requests, Magistrate Ekhubi granted Ambayi a bond of Ksh 2 million with a surety or an alternative cash bail of Ksh 1 million. Wafula and Kimani were each granted a bond of Ksh 600,000 with a surety or an alternative cash bail of Ksh 300,000.
The court scheduled the matter for a mention on May 20, 2025, where further directions will be given. The case highlights concerns over the security of public documents and the growing issue of land-related fraud, which has significant implications for property transactions in the region.
