Vihiga: EACC Detectives Arrest Senior Education Officer, Recover KSh 400k In Unaccounted Cash

• Noel Malanda, a County Chief Officer for Education, was arrested by the EACC on suspicion of extortion and other corrupt conduct
• Malanda was detained at Kisumu Port Police Station, pending investigative sessions at EACC Kisumu Regional Offices
• She allegedly demanded bribes to issue contracts for completed works and services, even in cases where contractors were procured procedurally
• During a search in her office, officers seized KSh 400,000, which she could not account for and was believed to be extorted from contractors

Didacus Malowa, a journalist at TUKO.co.ke, brings over three years of experience covering politics and current affairs in Kenya.

Vihiga - Detectives attached to the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) have arrested a senior Vihiga county official in connection with an ongoing corruption probe.

In a statement, the EACC stated that Noel Malanda, a County Chief Officer for Education, was arrested on suspicion of extortion, kickbacks and other forms of corrupt conduct

"She is believed to be running a graft scheme in her docket where she demands hefty kickbacks before any contract award and further before any payments are made for completed works," EACC reported.

She was detained at Kisumu Port Police Station pending investigative sessions at EACC Kisumu Regional Offices on Friday.

She has reportedly been verbally instructing contractors to commence works and deliver services without signed contracts, even in cases where the contractors have been procured procedurally.

When they completed work and supply of the services, she would allegedly demand bribes to issue contracts, which would form part of the payment documents.

What was seized during Malanda's arrest

The EACC revealed that Malanda had recently demanded KSh 200,000 as a condition for approving his payment of KSh 1.8 Million.

During a search in her office, the officers seized KSh 400,000, which she could not account for and believed to have been taken from a contractor.

"In this particular case, the suspect demanded KSh. 200,000 from a trader who had supplied ECD Certificates as a condition for approving his payment of KSh 1.8 Million. During the arrest, the Commission recovered KSh 400,000 in her office believed to be part of the money extorted from contractors. The suspect was unable to account for the seized funds," continued the report.

Roysambu assistant county commissioner, agent arrested

In a related incident, Roysambu Assistant County Commissioner Mercy Kavoi and her agent David Musyoki became the latest guests of the state after police pounced on her following complaints of bribery and extortion.

The two are accused of demanding a bribe for returning construction materials that Kavoi confiscated.

Acting on a complaint filed on June 9, 2023, anti-corruption detectives set a trap to catch the assistant commissioner in the act.