Mombasa businessman evicted from Ksh.200M property wants IG Koome to intervene

Mombasa businessman Mohamed Madhubuti now wants Inspector General of Police Japhet Koome to intervene after armed officers evicted him from his Ksh.200 million property on Wednesday.

An altercation ensued between the Lamu Marine and Allied Product Limited Director and officers from Makupa Police Station after they forcefully ejected him and his family from the building.

Madhubuti claims that the officers led by the OCS raided his home illegally despite the Court of Appeal ruling in his favour as the bonafide owner of the multi-million property.

He alleges foul play in the eviction, arguing that the Makupa OCS had done a background check on the land ownership and seen court orders which confirmed him as the legitimate owner of the property, but still went ahead to kick him out.

“Being the proprietor of the property, I have been illegally evicted from the property by the Makupa OCS. They intimidated me and ferried goons inside my property and the other sad part is that the OCS himself confirmed that they actually verified at the Lands Registry who is the proprietor and found that it is Lamu Marine and they went to the Court of Appeal and verified the court orders, where the court said the property be reverted back to Lamu Marine,” said Madhubuti.

According to the businessman, the OCS, after evicting him, called saying that he was aware Madhubuti was the rightful owner of the property, but that his hands were tied since he was “under instructions.”

"I want the director of investigations to take my file from Makupa Police Station. I have no faith in that police station anymore. Imagine that the investigation officer who is investigating my complaint is the one who is coming together with his officers to evict me while armed,” said the businessman.

"The one who knows the truth comes to evict me, and later on, he calls me saying, 'My brother I could not look you in the eyes, I was under instructions. I'm sorry. I know the truth.’”

He now wants a different investigative body to take up the matter since he has lost faith in the Makupa OCS.

“I am asking the Inspector General, the national government to intervene because the police cannot be used as guns for hire. Kenya has its laws, Article 40 has to be respected and if it has happened to me today, other Kenyans are in danger,” stated Madhubuti.

In the land tussle that has been ongoing for more than 25 years, the property was used as security to acquire a loan from Standard Chartered Bank by Madhubuti's late father's former business partners.

The bank later sought to repossess the property in question but Madhubuti and his 90-year-old mother contested the matter in court.

The Court of Appeal's Lady Justice Pauline Nyamweya, Justice Jessie Lesiit, and Justice Gatembu Kairu ruled in Madhubuti's favour in September 2023, ordering him to recover his property.