Gold scam: Amadi freeze orders extended again

anne amadi

Anne Amadi, the Chief Registrar of the Judiciary.

Photo credit: File | Nation Media Group

A judge has extended court orders freezing the bank accounts of Chief Registrar of Judiciary Anne Amadi, pending a ruling on validity of a case filed by a gold trader allegedly defrauded Sh103 million by her law firm through fake gold scam.

On Friday, Justice Alfred Mabeya extended the freeze order up to next week on June 9, when he will rule on the application by Ms Amadi, seeking to strike out the case or remove her from the suit.

The freeze orders issued on May 17 had been extended on Monday, pending Friday’s ruling.

The judge, however, said the ruling was not ready, hence postponed it and extended the interim orders. He said the documents in the case were voluminous.

"When l looked at the documents l found they were more voluminous than what you (lawyers) submitted on and therefore the ruling is not ready. It will be delivered on Friday, June 9, 2023 at 8am virtually. Interim orders will be extended until then," said Justice Mabeya.

The pending ruling concerns a request by Ms Amadi to have the orders freezing her accounts vacated, saying, there is no evidence to show she received part of the alleged gold fraud money in her personal accounts.

She also said there is no evidence indicating she dealt with the complainant, Mr Demetrios Bradshaw, a British national and his company Bruton Gold Trading LLC.

The gold trading company obtained the orders freezing bank accounts of a law firm that is associated with Ms Amadi, Amadi and Associates Advocates, and those of Ms Amadi, after claiming to have been defrauded of more than Sh100 million in US dollars in 2021.

The Briton claimed that Ms Amadi colluded with others through her law firm to defraud him $742,206 (Sh103,018,192). The accounts at ABC Bank were frozen on May 17, 2023.

Also frozen were the accounts of Ms Amadi’s son Brian Ochieng, lawyers Andrew Kiarie and Adrian Topoti, businessman Daniel Kangara and Liberian national Edward Taylor.

In the petition, Bruton claimed that the defendants, acting on behalf of the law firm Amadi and Associates Advocates, illegally obtained more than Sh89 million for gold that they never supplied.

The company claimed that it was interested in buying gold from Kenya and was introduced by one of the suspects, Mr Kangara.

They alleged that after agreement between the parties, Mr Kangara was to deliver gold which would then be exported to Dubai for sale.

It is their argument that Sh71 million was sent to Amadi’s law firm, Amadi and Associates, but that no gold was ever delivered.

The gold trader said Ms Amadi’s son — Mr Ochieng —and Mr Kiarie, as agents of Amadi and Associates, confirmed that they received money and withdrew it.

The company also argued that there was no evidence that the money ever left the hands of Mr Ochieng and Mr Kiarie as agents of the law firm.

But Ms Amadi said that there is nothing to show that the alleged funds for the purchase of 1,500 kilogrammes of gold by Bruton were wired to her personal bank account.

She also argued that she has not been in private practice since 2014, having resigned from Amadi and Associates after joining the Judiciary.