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Kamani brothers in court to block Swiss probe

Their lawyer Paul Nyamodi said the request for mutual legal assistance violates the rights of Kamani's because money laundering does not constitute an offence in Kenya/FILE

Their lawyer Paul Nyamodi said the request for mutual legal assistance violates the rights of Kamani’s because money laundering does not constitute an offence in Kenya/FILE

NAIROBI, Kenya, Jul 15 – Businessmen Deepak Kamani and his two brothers on Tuesday moved to court seeking to stop the Kenyan government from releasing any information requested by the Swiss Federal Attorney’s office.

The Swiss authorities sent a request to Attorney-General Githu Muigai to supply them with some information which will assist in prosecution of Kamani alongside Chamanlal Kamani and Rashmi Kamani before a Swiss court.

Muigai received the request for mutual legal assistance in criminal matters through a letter dated June 3 where the trio has been named as accused persons on allegations of money laundering.

Their lawyer Paul Nyamodi said the request for mutual legal assistance violates the rights of Kamani’s because money laundering does not constitute an offence in Kenya.

He said the law requires that for the request to be given the offence complained of is supposed to be criminal in both jurisdictions.

“The request by the Swiss Attorney is contrary to Article 305 of the Swiss Criminal Code since the allegations are false and unsubstantiated,” Nyamodi argued. “The request, if allowed, would amount to a violation of their (brothers) rights to a fair trial under Article 50”

Nyamodi went on to claim that the AG has publicly stated that he intends to comply with the request in complete disregard of their rights to fundamental fights and freedoms.

The AG is enabled by the Mutual Legal Assistance 2011 Act to grant mutual legal assistance upon request made by competent authorities of other countries.

The trio is under investigations in Switzerland for the offense of money laundering.

The Kamani brothers want the court to find that by choosing to act on the request without giving them an opportunity to be heard the AG has violated their right to a fair trial.

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They go on to say that they are not parties to the request and therefore it poses a direct threat to their fundamental rights to property and liberty.

Deepak was questioned on his role in the multi-billion shillings Anglo Leasing scandal by the Ethic and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) in June.

The anti-corruption agency had started investigations against the Kamani brothers in 2006 over corruption allegations and economic crimes involving procurement of security projects between the Government and some companies, including the Anglo-Leasing and Finance Company Ltd.

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