Hearing of National Youth Service scandal case failed to start after defence lawyers asked for time to consult on changes in the charge sheet introduced on Monday by the State.
It emerged on Monday that when the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Noordin Haji consolidated three charge sheets into one, he introduced new charges and also altered crime dates.
This was in the case where former Youth and Gender Affairs Principal Secretary Lillian Mbogo Omollo, former NYS Director-General Richard Ndubai and 31 others are accused of defrauding the public Sh60 million.
Assistant DPP Joseph Riungu argued that the prosecution was ready with its first witness in court, adding that the defence had enough time to study the new charge sheet.
“We are the only ones who have come to you in honesty. We are compliant with the law. On the introduced charges, they had sufficient time from yesterday,” argued Riungu.
He insisted that nothing new had been introduced. However, Magistrate Peter Ooko adjourned the case as some suspects had new charges while others had additional ones.
The case could not also proceed as one of the suspects, Linlan Otieno, a Government employee, claimed to have been at large from last year, took plea yesterday.
“The prosecution has admitted that in its consolidated charge sheet that it furnished the defence yesterday, has introduced some new counts in respect of the accused. Further, they have admitted that in some counts the particulars of the dates when the offences were alleged to have been committed have also been changed… In interest of justice and in further compliance of Article 50 of the Constitution, I am inclined to give the defence three days in order to prepare for the in light of the amendments introduced by the consolidated charge sheet,” ruled Ooko.