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Ex senior KRA official will now spend 6 months behind bars if he fails to pay a fine of Sh 1m.
Peter Muhu Muriuki was fined on January 19,2023 by Magistrate Bernard Ochoi of Milimani Law Courts after he was found guilty of obtaining more than Sh 7.8M by false pretence.
Muhu is being represented by lawyer Danstan Omari who pleaded for him for lesser sentence saying he was a first offender during mitigation.
He was found guilty of committing the said offense by pretending that his lawyerfirm was authorized to collect taxes.While sentencing Muriuki, the magistrate noted that he had considered his mitigation and a probation report tabled in court.Omari during mitigation had informed the court that the accused has a sickly wife who he is taking care of her medical bills as he is a bread winner.Last week the magistrate ruled the accused did not dispute the allegations that he was a KRA officer.Ochoi said Muriuki misled Scripture Mission East Africa by stating that his law firm was entitled to collect taxes.The magistrate said there was evidence that Muriuki induced the director of Scripture Mission East Africa to deliver Sh7.8 million to an account belonging to Mungu and Co-advocates by falsely pretending the said law firm was an agent of KRA and authorised to collect taxes.Muriuki is also charged with issuing a fake Kenya Revenue Authority pay as you earn credit slip to the director, purporting it to be valid.The magistrate said at the closure of the prosecution case, the prosecution called 12 witnesses, all of whom successfully identified the accused person.”The court has satisfied that the prosecution had proved their case beyond reasonable doubt and I therefore find him guilty and convict him as charged,” the magistrate said.