The Sh167 million NYS charges levelled against former PS Lilian Omollo have been withdrawn.
In a ruling on Tuesday, Chief Magistrate Lucas Onyina allowed the application by the Director of Public Prosecutions to withdraw the charges under section 87 of the criminal procedure code.
The withdrawal, however, only relates to Omollo meaning the case against former NYS Director General Richard Ndubai, the Ngirita family and other senior public officials in the case will proceed.
Omollo and Ndubai were accused of conspiracy to commit an economic crime by allowing the payment of Sh167,715,700 to three companies including Firstling Limited, Kunjiwa Enterprises and Ameritrade Limited.
But the Director of Public Prosecutions in reviewing the case said none of the witnesses in the case have implicated Omollo either directly or indirectly in the scandal that rocked the Jubilee government in 2018.
The NYS cases are in three clusters. There is one involving Sh60 million, another Sh167 million and the third Sh226 million that is handled by magistrate Eunice Kagure.
In the Sh60 million case, Omollo, ex-NYS Director General Richard Ndubai and other accused persons denied conspiring to defraud the National Youth Service under the State Department of Public Service the said millions.
Omollo faced another count of wilfully failing to comply with the law by unlawfully authorising payment of Sh26,660,000 belonging to the State Department of Public Service to Catherine Njeri, Andrine Grace and Sarah Murugu.
Other charges against the accused persons were conspiracy to commit an economic crime, abuse of office, wilful failure to comply with applicable procedures relating to the management of public funds, and fraudulent acquisition of public property.
Omollo and Ndubai were in the other two cases which are pending before different courts concerning payment of Sh167,715,700 to three companies — Firstling Limited, Kunjiwa Enterprises and Ameritrade Limited — and Sh226.9 million to companies related to the Ngirita family.