News

Story by PATRICK NZIOKA

The infamous Artur brothers were con men and drug traffickers who enjoyed high-level State protection.

Their presence in the country was part of a conspiracy to commit atrocities, investigations into their stay in Kenya reveal.

Special adviser to President Mwai Kibaki based at State House Stanley Murage, Ms Mary Wambui and her daughter Winnie Wangui Mwai were some of their close associates, a situation which led to the two parliamentary committees that investigated the saga to conclude the Armenian brothers had direct high-level protection in the Government.

Internal Security minister John Michuki, head of the civil service Francis Muthaura, former CID director Joseph Kamau and businessmen Raju Sanghani and Kamlesh Pattni were fingered as having played a critical role in their stay in the country.

Artur Sargasyan and Artur Margaryan – branded as mercenaries by Lang’ata MP Raila Odinga - were found to have engaged in illegalities with the full knowledge of the law enforcement agencies.

Some of their malpractices included irregularities in their business in Kenya. They are found to have registered their companies – Kensingston Holdings Ltd and Brotherlink International – irregularly. They used the companies to import goods without paying duty.

They also used Government vehicles and had even been appointed to the police force as deputy police commissioners. “The illegalities lead to only one conclusion; the Artur brothers were enjoying State protection at the highest levels of Government,” the report tabled yesterday in Parliament by nominated MP Kipkalya Kones on behalf of the investigating committees says.

The investigations on the Arturs were undertaken by a joint team composed of members of the departmental committees on administration, national security and local authorities and administration of justice and legal affairs.

The joint committees lament that evidence adduced on the matter was manipulated to conceal the true intention of their presence in Kenya as well as to protect their sponsors. The committee says the deportation of the Arturs after they drew guns at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport was stage managed to avert further atrocities.

The report delves into the raid at the Standard Group, saying the management disputed Internal Security minister John Michuki’s assertions the media house was about to publish damning stories about State House.

“The Artur brothers clearly demonstrated that they had political connections. A case in point is the instigated and orchestrated raid on the Standard Group which minister John Michuki termed as Government operation,” the report says in part.

The investigations established there was a lot of administrative lapses as well as cover-ups to assist the two and their suspect operations in Kenya. They cite the lapse at JKIA, use of Government vehicles and the role of the police department who they say aided and sometimes abated the brothers’ criminal activities.

The committees point out they did not get to the bottom of the saga following hurdles placed on their way by those who were bent on protecting the brothers.

They cite failure to honour summons served on senior police officers Isaiah Osugo (PCIO, Nairobi), David Kimaiyo (director of operations) and Patrick Lumumba (OCPD, Gigiri) as the most serious attempt to scuttle the investigations.

Others include an attempt by Justice minister Martha Karua to stop the investigations when the Kiruki Commission on the same was appointed.

They take issue with the rejection of the committee’s attempt to introduce a motion in Parliament to take evidence in public, a situation they attribute to Ms Karua by virtue of her position as the deputy leader of Government Business in Parliament. The appointment of the Kiruki Commission, whose report is yet to be made public, as well as failure to avail the same to them was part of the cover-up as it was never intended to unearth the truth.

The committees wants Parliament adopt the report and call upon the attorney general Amos Wako to prosecute the three senior police officers and any other individual who disobeyed summons to appear before them.

The committee wants further investigations into the saga.