Re: Former Kenya Aid's fate sealed as fourth bail plea flops

[Guest guest]

You are quite right Chifu! Fleecing money allocated for the dying and the

dead of Aids deserves absolutely no mercy. We can only hope that similar

cases are treated in

And what a brilliant defence by the dean of law Khaminwa?If claim to

momentary stress were the sole necessary and sufficient condition for

freedom how happy would our criminals be?Come now Dr. Khaminwa, you can find

a more plausible argument in mitigation!

Former Kenya Aid's fate sealed as fourth bail plea

flops

The lady is in deep trouble. When you stole funds allocated to help

out hiv/aids you deserve no mercy.

Gachara's fate sealed as fourth bail plea flops

By Judy Ogutu

Former National Aids Control Council director Dr Margaret Gachara

will now remain in custody until the completion of her case.

This was after her fourth application to be released on bail failed

to bear fruits yesterday at the High Court.

Chief Magistrate, Mr Aggrey Muchelule had previously denied her bond

three times, saying she would abscond trial.

And dismissing her application yesterday, High Court judge Mr Justice

Kubo ruled that the prosecution had demonstrated credible

grounds that there existed a real risk of Gachara failing to turn up

for trial if granted bail.

She is accused of fraudulently obtaining Sh24 million from the Aids

council.

The court had earlier heard that police officers - after making

repeated visits to her house in vain - were forced to obtain a

warrant of arrest, which enabled them to break into the former

director's house to arrest her.

Kubo said the investigating officer was justified in concluding that

Gachara had deliberately been avoiding arrest.

He said Gachara's behaviour, which had necessitated her house to be

broken into by the police, had tilted the scales against her plea for

bail.

" I sympathise with her but I think she is the author of her own

misfortune, and the law should take its course, " Kubo ruled.

However, he directed the trial court to make every practical

endeavour to see that Gachara's case was hastened.

Defence lawyer Dr Khaminwa had presented before court medical

reports indicating that Gachara was suffering from stress, adding

that this was what had prompted her behaviour while the police were

looking for her.

And commenting on this, Kubo said the medical reports did not

establish that she was suffering from a mental illness at the

material time or that she was out of full control of her mental

faculties.

" The two reports should not, therefore, be elevated beyond what they

say, " he said.

The doctors were not able to link with certainty her stress or

depression to the behaviour she displayed towards the police and

ultimately the court, said the judge.

Gachara has been remanded at the Lang'ata women's prison for over a

month. The case will be heard on April 14.

http://www.eastandard.net/headlines/news08040411.htm

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