The Milimani Law Courts has acquitted Ugandan national Abbas Badru Ali, also known as Yuri Sande Ismael, in a high-profile Sh8.1 million gold fraud case that has attracted public attention.
While delivering his judgment, Milimani Principal Magistrate Robinson Ondieki ruled that the prosecution had failed to establish a prima facie case against the accused and ordered his acquittal under Section 215 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
“I have considered all the evidence produced by the prosecution and the defence presented by the accused and find that the prosecution failed to adduce sufficient evidence to sustain a conviction. I therefore acquit the accused under Section 215 of the CPC,” ruled Ondieki.
Earlier this month, the court had found that Badru had a case to answer and placed him on his defence. During the defence hearing, the businessman denied receiving the disputed funds through his company.
Badru told the court that he merely acted as a link between the buyer and the seller, insisting that his role was limited to that of an intermediary.
According to court documents, the accused was charged with defrauding Belgian investor Yvan De Coninck on August 11, 2021, in Nairobi.
Prosecutors had alleged that Badru obtained USD 54,550 (approximately Sh8.18 million) by falsely claiming that he could supply 15 kilogrammes of gold. The gold was never delivered, leading to the fraud charges.