A Kenyan lawyer, Stephen Juma Ndeda, has been charged with money laundering after allegedly attempting to conceal and dispose of approximately Sh6.7 million linked to a company in Bulgaria.
Ndeda is accused of engaging in a money laundering transaction involving USD 52,490 (approximately Sh6,797,455) through an account registered under Ndeda & Company Advocates (Account No. 55030130004234), despite having reason to believe the funds were proceeds of crime.
The alleged offense occurred on June 20, 2023, at UBA Kenya Bank Limited’s Upper Hill branch in Nairobi. The funds reportedly originated from a Bulgarian firm known as Algans Eood, and Ndeda is believed to have acted with the intent to disguise the illicit source of the money.
In addition to the money laundering charge, the advocate is facing accusations of forging a land sale agreement for parcel No. KJD/KEEKONYOKIE/ILKISUMET/3371. The forged document named Andrew Immanuel Simiyu as the vendor and Algans Limited as the buyer, falsely presenting it as a legitimate agreement signed by Simiyu.
The forgery is said to have taken place on or around June 14, 2023, at the offices of Ndeda & Company Advocates located at View Park Towers in Nairobi. Prosecutors allege that the forgery was intended to facilitate fraud.
Ndeda also faces an additional charge of uttering the forged sale agreement. The court was told he knowingly and fraudulently presented the fake document to one Calvins Gwaro Nyamwange at the same bank on June 20, 2023.
Ndeda denied all the charges when he appeared before Senior Principal Magistrate Boaz Ombewa and was released on a cash bail of Sh700,000.
