The High Court in Eldoret is set to rule on a KES 5.9 billion compensation claim by Francis Simiyu, the former CEO of the Christian Health Association of Kenya (CHAK), for wrongful detention over four decades ago.
Justice Reuben Nyakundi has scheduled the judgment for December 6, 2024, and granted the involved parties 14 days to file their submissions ahead of the decision.
Simiyu, who was convicted 41 years ago for the alleged theft of KES 3 million from his employer, now claims his arrest and conviction were based on malicious prosecution.
He served a three-year sentence following the Chief Magistrate’s Court ruling in Nairobi, which found him guilty of theft. However, by the time his appeal succeeded in overturning the conviction, he had already completed his prison term.
Simiyu’s case, filed three years ago by his lawyer Francis Omenya, names the Attorney General, the Inspector General of Police, and the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) as respondents. Simiyu is seeking KES 5 billion in damages for wrongful arrest, prosecution, and imprisonment, in addition to KES 900 million for interest and related costs.
The former CEO argues that his detention has had a lasting impact on his personal and professional life. Although the Court of Appeal eventually vindicated him of the charges, Simiyu insists that the state is liable for his suffering, both during his wrongful incarceration and the years that followed.
