Former Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala can breathe a sigh of relief after the anti-corruption court in Malindi allowed the termination of a Sh3.3 billion graft case against him.
This is after the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions applied for the accused persons to be discharged.
In a letter dated July 31, 2024, the ODPP directed the discontinuation of the proceedings as investigations had not been completed and full disclosure made.
The ODPP argued that the period that it might take to finalize the investigations was uncertain.
Delivering the ruling Malindi Chief Magistrate James Mwaniki allowed the application by the ODPP to have the case withdrawn.
The Magistrate ordered the accused persons to be discharged under section 87(a) of the Criminal Code.
“Any cash bail deposited in court be released to the depositors and any security documents deposited in court be released back to the sureties and the sureties be and are hereby relieved of their obligations,” ordered the Magistrate.
He however reiterated that withdrawal of the charges as sought by the ODPP cannot be said to amount to an abuse of court process.
The Magistrate said whereas the withdrawal amounts to a discharge, any decision by the ODPP to institute subsequent proceedings against the accused persons or any of them on account of the same facts may itself easily be interpreted as or may amount to an abuse of the court process for the reasons stated elsewhere above.
