Aircraft allegedly flown out of Kisumu despite court order, fraud trial hears

NAIROBI, Kenya, Sep 4 — A disputed C-160 Transall cargo aircraft was allegedly flown out of Kisumu International Airport despite a High Court order barring its removal, a court has heard in the criminal case against four foreign nationals accused of forgery and conspiracy to commit a felony.

The revelation emerged as the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) advanced its case against Geoffrey Leach, David Berry, Michael Allan McKeever and Christopher Bruce Wilhelm, who are facing charges arising from the aircraft’s disputed ownership, registration and removal from Kenya.

The four are charged with forgery contrary to Section 349 of the Penal Code and conspiracy to commit a felony contrary to Section 393 of the Penal Code.

At the Kisumu Senior Principal Magistrate’s Court, the prosecution, led by Principal Prosecution Counsel Douglas Moseti, called Captain Newton Osiemo, Chief Executive Officer of Wilken Aviation Limited, as its first witness.

Osiemo told the court that Wilken Aviation Limited and Flying Tiger Oversize Cargo Pty Ltd (FTOC) jointly purchased the aircraft from Indonesia on November 17, 2014, with FTOC holding a 70 per cent stake and Wilken Aviation 30 per cent.

The aircraft was subsequently registered in the Central African Republic (CAR) and flown to Kisumu International Airport, where it remained as it underwent aviation inspections.

The witness said the aircraft was intended for charter and humanitarian operations, including transporting food under the United Nations World Food Programme.

However, the ownership arrangement later descended into a dispute after questions emerged over the aircraft’s registration.

Osiemo told the court that Wilken Aviation was shocked to learn that registration documents had allegedly been obtained from Comoros without the company’s involvement.

“This was shocking because we [Wilken Aviation] were not involved in writing to CAR to approve the transfer to Comoros,” Osiemo testified.

The dispute eventually moved to court, with Wilken Aviation seeking to stop the aircraft from being removed from Kenya.

On March 5, 2019, the High Court issued an interlocutory injunction restraining FTOC from removing the aircraft from Kisumu and directing the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority to ensure compliance with the order.

Despite the injunction, the court heard that the aircraft was allegedly flown out of Kisumu on March 9, 2021, without Wilken Aviation’s knowledge.

Osiemo said he was informed that the aircraft had departed for Entebbe, Uganda, carrying four crew members.

The prosecution further alleges that documents used to facilitate the aircraft’s departure were falsified and that fraudulent Tajikistan registration documents were obtained.

The court heard that the Comoros Civil Aviation Authority later confirmed that documents presented in relation to the aircraft were fraudulent and advised that the matter be reported to Interpol.

The allegations form part of the prosecution’s case against the four accused persons, who are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

The criminal proceedings have also received a boost after the High Court in Kisumu dismissed in its entirety a constitutional petition filed by the accused persons seeking to stop their prosecution.

The ruling allows the DPP to continue with the criminal case as the prosecution presents evidence over the aircraft’s acquisition, ownership, registration and eventual departure from Kenya.