Faith Masita
Garissa, Kenya -The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) has arrested a sitting Member of the County Assembly (MCA) and two former senior officials of the Garissa County government over alleged fraudulent payments totalling Ksh 51,495,253 (Sh51.4 million).
The suspects Abdi Ibrahim Daar, the MCA for Balambala Ward, Mohamud Dubow Korane, former Director of Accounting Services, and Yussuf Bethe Ali, former Senior Principal Economist were detained by EACC detectives on Sunday, February 22, 2026. They are expected to be arraigned at the Garissa Law Courts today (Monday, February 23) for plea-taking.
According to official charge documents dated February 23, the trio is accused of conspiring to commit corruption between April and June 2022 by facilitating payments from the County Government of Garissa to Qorjarey Enterprise and General Supplies Limited for goods and services that were never procured or delivered.
Investigators allege that the payments were processed through the Integrated Financial Management Information System (IFMIS). Korane is said to have authorised two payments one of over Ksh 10.8 million and another exceeding Ksh 12.9 million to the company for undelivered items. Yussuf Ali is accused of preparing multiple invoices that facilitated the irregular disbursements. Meanwhile, MCA Daar is facing alleged forgery charges for falsifying tender and award documentation used to justify the suspicious payments.
In a statement, the EACC said the arrests are part of intensified efforts to curb corruption and safeguard public resources at both county and national government levels.
The suspects spent the night in custody following their arrest on Sunday and were scheduled to appear in court at 9:00 a.m. on Monday. Legal teams for the trio are expected to make bail applications, and the prosecution is likely to oppose bail on grounds of potential interference with witnesses or evidence.
This latest action follows a series of high-profile anti-graft operations by the EACC, including the recent arraignment of several officials from Homa Bay County in a separate procurement irregularities case involving Ksh 348 million.
