NAIROBI, Apr 21 — A senior National Youth Service (NYS) official has denied any connection to an Embu hotel raided by anti-graft detectives as part of investigations into alleged corruption and economic crimes amounting to Sh2 billion.
The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) on Friday confirmed it had conducted a search operation at Mavvel Hotel in Embu Town, linking the premises to David Mbogo Muthee, Head of Procurement at the NYS Training School in Gilgil.
The commission said the raid, carried out pursuant to a court order, yielded evidentiary material to support ongoing investigations into suspected conflict of interest and abuse of office involving senior NYS officials.
However, Mbogo has since distanced himself from the hotel, accusing the EACC of misrepresentation and harassment.
In a letter dated April 20 and addressed to the Commission’s Head of Investigations, Mbogo, through his lawyer Onuong’a Makori, dismissed claims linking him to the property as false and misleading.
“These assertions are false, misleading, and made in reckless disregard of facts already within your possession,” the letter reads in part.
The lawyer further accused the EACC of engaging in a “deliberate and sustained pattern of harassment, misrepresentation, and abuse of investigative powers.”
To support his position, Mbogo’s legal team attached a CR12 document indicating that Naftali Kiperu is the sole director and shareholder of The Mavvel Place Limited, the entity associated with the hotel.
“This assertion is entirely false and unsupported by any evidence whatsoever,” Makori said, noting that the Commission has long been in possession of documentation confirming his client’s lack of ownership.
The lawyer also questioned the legality of the search operation, alleging that the EACC obtained a parallel warrant from a Nyeri court despite a similar matter being active before the Milimani Law Courts in Nairobi, where an earlier warrant had been lifted.
Further, Mbogo argued that his tenure at NYS was too brief to implicate him in the alleged procurement irregularities under investigation.
According to his lawyer, Mbogo served as Head of Supply Chain Management at NYS for only 21 days between April 17, 2025 and May 7, 2025, a period significantly shorter than the timeframe under review, which spans from 2017 to March 2025.
“This limited tenure is critical, as the allegations relate to a period during which our client neither held office nor exercised any authority,” the lawyer stated.
Mbogo also maintained that no audit queries have been raised against him and that procurement processes under investigation were handled before his appointment, with his predecessor having already recorded statements with investigators.
The letter further accused the EACC of recycling allegations from a similar raid conducted in May 2025, which was widely publicised and linked to an alleged Sh2 billion loss at NYS.
“The publications made by your Commission… are materially identical, with no new facts disclosed,” Makori said, arguing that the agency is engaging in “public sensationalism and reputational damage” rather than genuine investigation.
Mbogo is now demanding that the EACC retract its statements, cease further alleged misrepresentation, and issue a public apology within seven days.
He has warned that failure to comply will result in legal action, including claims for constitutional violations, injunctive relief, and damages for defamation.
The EACC has yet to respond to the allegations.