The trial of former Oki Company director Honey Khatwani took a dramatic turn on Thursday after witnesses narrated before the Milimani Law Courts how the businessman allegedly diverted millions of shillings from the company into his personal and family accounts.
Appearing before Senior Principal Magistrate Ben Mark Ekhubi,One of the witnesses, Sameer kewal Ramani testified that company funds were routinely deposited into Khatwani’s Ecobank accounts in both Kenya shillings and US dollars. He explained that once the cash deposits were made, receipts would be forwarded to Khatwani via WhatsApp.
According to the witness, even cheques paid by clients to Oki Company ended up in Khatwani’s personal accounts. He insisted that a comprehensive audit report captured these financial discrepancies, adding, “So many cheques are there from the client’s bank, which have gone to his personal accounts.”
The court also heard claims that part of the money was directed to Khatwani’s wife through her M-Pesa account. The witness said he could not personally obtain M-Pesa statements but was certain of the transactions. “The money was going to his wife’s M-Pesa,” he told the court, stressing that evidence could be found in the audit files.
He further revealed that employees regularly shared daily financial and operational reports with Khatwani through WhatsApp. However, the reports were allegedly altered by the director before being forwarded elsewhere. Asked why such discrepancies were never reported, the witness said it was impossible because senior company officials were Khatwani’s brothers.
The prosecution also presented another witness who had worked for Oki Company since July 2023. He admitted that he did not have a work permit when he was first employed and claimed he had requested Khatwani to apply for one on his behalf. When asked if he could prove this, the witness replied, “I am the eyewitness. Not everything is done through emails—some things are done through calls.”
Pressed further on his employment status, the witness said he had signed a contract with the company but did not retain a copy. “Employment contracts are always with the director, not the employees,” he told the court. He admitted he had no payslips but maintained that Khatwani paid workers in cash. According to him, despite repeated requests to have his salary deposited in an account, Khatwani never opened one for him and also failed to process the necessary work permits.
The witness alleged that Khatwani coerced him into working for the company under verbal threats. Although he had no documented proof of the threats, he said he feared losing his position if he resisted.
The court further heard that Khatwani personally reached out to clients, urging them to buy goods from his company while portraying both Oki Company and his own firm as one entity. Customers reportedly called to complain about the confusion, saying they had been persuaded by Khatwani himself.
Another line of testimony implicated Khatwani in manipulating company records. The witness said,
“Even for the reports, evidence is there in the audit report. We have the full audit report, we have the files.” He added that discrepancies in revenue, collections, and expenditure could all be traced back to the former director’s involvement.
Khatwani is accused of orchestrating a scheme in which over Sh356 million was siphoned from Oki Company through falsified records, diversion of payments, and misuse of client funds.
The case is scheduled to be mentioned again on September 29, when the prosecution is expected to continue calling witnesses to testify against the former director.
