Former Sports CS Hassan Wario Sentenced to Six Years in Prison or Pay Sh3.6 Million Fine

A Nairobi court has slapped former Sports Cabinet Secretary Hassan Wario with a Sh3.6 million fine or serve a six-year prison term in default.

This is after he was found guilty of corruption, abuse of office, and misappropriation of public funds during the 2016 Olympics Games in Rio, Brazil.

Stephen Soi, who was convicted of graft-related charges alongside Wario, was fined Sh105 million. Soi, a former National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOCK) official and Team Kenya Head of Delegation risks 12 years in jail if he fails to pay the fine. 

While convicting the two on Wednesday, Chief Magistrate Elizabeth Juma of the anti-corruption court said Wario took advantage of his office and had three other persons included in the Team Kenya list and receive allowances, a move that resulted in loss of public funds.

“The additional names were included after they closed the accreditation.  Clearly, this was an indicator that the three were not part of the team Kenya,” ruled the magistrate.

The magistrate further noted that Wario did not have the mandate to allow the three—Monica Sairo, Richard Abura, and Edan Adow—to travel to Rio, Brazil for the 2016 Olympic Games.

Wario served as the CS for Sports from 2013 to 2018 and currently serves as the Kenyan Ambassador to Austria.