Former Nairobi Governor Mike Mbuvi Sonko has scored a major legal victory after the High Court ordered the immediate release of his frozen assets worth more than Ksh.574 million.

The ruling delivered by Justice Nixon Sifuna on Tuesday concluded a long-drawn legal battle between Sonko and the Asset Recovery Agency (ARA), which had accused him of money laundering and misappropriation of county funds.

Judge Rules ARA Lacked Evidence

The court ruled that the ARA failed to provide evidence linking Sonko’s wealth to illicit financial dealings, making their case collapse.

“The Honorable Mr. Justice Sifuna has rendered his verdict on the case lodged by the Asset Recovery Agency against the former governor of Nairobi City County, Hon. Mike Sonko, in which the ARA had sought to freeze his bank account on allegations of money laundering and theft of county funds,” Sonko’s lawyer stated.

According to the ruling, the court meticulously examined the evidence presented by both parties and found glaring gaps in the prosecution’s case.

Sonko’s defense demonstrated that he had accumulated significant wealth through real estate dealings and business ventures even before his election as Nairobi Governor.

The court questioned why the ARA, with all its investigative powers and access to financial records, failed to provide evidence showing discrepancies in his financial records before and after assuming office.

“The ARA was unable to prove or demonstrate that any of the money held by Governor Sonko in the frozen accounts was illegally acquired,” Justice Sifuna ruled.

He further noted that under Article 40 of the Constitution, every Kenyan has a right to own property, except when such property is shown to have been illegally acquired.

Claims of Political Witch Hunt

Sonko had maintained throughout the proceedings that the case was politically motivated and part of a broader scheme to oust him from office.

He argued that the proceedings were initiated during his impeachment process in 2020 and were aimed at tarnishing his reputation.

“This was nothing more than a witch hunt,” Sonko’s defense insisted, accusing the agency of being misused as a political tool.

The judge was particularly critical of ARA’s investigation methods, describing them as shoddy and incomplete.

The court observed that the agency neither called officials from the Nairobi County Government as witnesses nor presented evidence that public funds had been siphoned off under Sonko’s watch.

“Being a public institution, the ARA is under a public duty to provide not only the evidence that incriminates a suspect but also that which exculpates him if available. Unfortunately, this was not the case here,” Justice Sifuna observed.

Judge’s Observations on Suspicion and Evidence

He went on to caution that suspicion alone could not be the basis for freezing assets without substantive evidence.

“I am of the view that suspicion has to be founded and reasonable. It cannot just be from without. Where the Agency’s action arises from a complaint, the complaint should be specified and explained, even if the complainant’s name is not disclosed,” he said.

Sonko’s lawyer also stressed that the allegations of theft totaling Ksh.537 million had no basis, pointing out that most claims referred to a period before Sonko was elected governor.

The defense argued that despite ARA’s claims, the agency could not trace a single shilling to illicit activity.

“In the end, the ARA was saying out of all these allegations we have made, Ksh.23 million is what we are claiming. In spite of that, not a penny was demonstrated to be illegally owing from them,” Sonko’s lawyer stated.

The ruling marks a major setback for the ARA, which has previously been accused of rushing cases without gathering sufficient evidence.

For Sonko, the judgment clears his name after years of legal battles and restores access to millions of shillings that had been frozen for over five years.

The court’s decision is likely to ignite fresh debate about the effectiveness of anti-corruption bodies in Kenya and whether they are being used as instruments of political witch hunts rather than genuine accountability.