Kenya has announced that it will seek the extradition of the director of Italian construction firm CMC di Ravenna following a nine-month international investigation into two hydroelectric projects in the Rift Valley.
Kenya’s director of public prosecutions, Noordin Haji, told the Reuters news agency he was issuing an international arrest warrant for Paolo Porcelli, 51, the head of Southern Africa operations for the contractor.
He said: "We have the Italian individual, he has not managed to present himself so we will be seeking his extradition to come and face the charges here in Kenya."
CMC di Ravenna denied any wrongdoing in a statement on Monday.
The move follows the arrest of 28 people, including Henry Rotich, Kenya’s serving finance minister, for suspected corruption.
According to prosecutors, irregularities in the procurement process led to an increase in the projects’ cost. Haji said: "The national treasury negotiated a commercial facility increasing the amount to approximately $608m, which is $165m more than necessary."
The arrests were made after a nine-month investigation into the Kimwarer and Arror dams, which are planned for Elgeyo Marakwet county. The inquiry was carried out in cooperation with authorities in Italy, the UK and Dubai.
Image: ©GCR, illustration by Denis Carrier
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