The High Court has ordered the preservation of land and six motor vehicles linked to Embu Mbeti North MCA Peter Muriithi Nyaga as the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) pursues the recovery of KSh111.5 million allegedly acquired through dealings with the county government.
In a ruling delivered on October 29, 2026, Justice Joseph Biomdo barred Nyaga and companies associated with him from selling, transferring, charging or disposing of the disputed properties pending the hearing and determination of the recovery suit.
However, the court allowed the vehicles to remain in supervised commercial use, subject to strict conditions, rather than grounding them completely.
The Land Registrar and the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) were directed to place restrictions on the land title and vehicle logbooks to prevent dealings that could frustrate the recovery proceedings.
The commission filed the suit on August 28, 2026, seeking to recover KSh111,577,188.75 which it alleges was irregularly acquired from the Embu County Government through contracts awarded to five companies associated with Nyaga.
The companies named in the proceedings are Truco Enterprises Ltd, Peanco Ltd, Njewaco Ltd, Hasoco Ltd, Hiwco Ltd and Isaac & Timothy Company Ltd.
According to EACC, investigations established that Nyaga traded with the county government through companies in which he had interests, creating a conflict of interest involving his position as an elected representative.
The disputed payments relate to 20 road construction and maintenance contracts awarded by the county government between the 2017/2018 and 2023/2024 financial years. The commission alleges that five companies linked to Nyaga, his wife and son received the payments.
EACC further traced part of the money to the acquisition of land parcel number Mbeti/Kiamuringa/49, registered in the name of Isaac & Timothy Company Ltd, as well as six motor vehicles identified in the recovery proceedings.
The vehicles are registration numbers KDD 932H, KDC 857D, KDL 451F, KCQ 172W, KHMA 624H and ZF-9309.
The court imposed additional safeguards on the vehicles, requiring the defendants to insure them and submit proof of insurance within 30 days. They were also directed to install GPS tracking devices at their own cost, grant EACC real-time access to the tracking information and participate in physical inspections every two months.
The defendants must additionally file sworn quarterly reports detailing the vehicles’ locations, commercial use and maintenance. Any breach of the conditions or unauthorised movement outside the court’s jurisdiction could trigger their immediate and total grounding.
Nyaga and the companies have denied wrongdoing, arguing that the contracts were competitively awarded, the work was completed and the assets were acquired using legitimate business income and bank loans.
They also challenged the recovery proceedings, maintaining that EACC had not demonstrated that the MCA influenced the county’s procurement decisions.
The case follows an earlier Assets Recovery Agency attempt to forfeit three vehicles linked to Nyaga over separate corruption allegations. The High Court dismissed that application in November 2025 after finding that the agency had not established evidence linking him to interference with the tender awards.
However, EACC maintains that its current case is distinct because it concerns 20 county contracts worth KSh111.5 million and traces the alleged proceeds to the properties now under preservation.
The latest ruling does not amount to a final forfeiture of the assets or a determination of liability. The properties will remain under the court’s restrictions as the recovery suit proceeds.
