Imperial Bank firms want seized computers returned

Two companies associated with Imperial Bank founder Abdulmalek Janmohammed have moved to court to recover tax records and other documents confiscated when the collapsed lender was placed under receivership last year.

Sandview Properties and Upperview Properties claim in court papers that the Kenya Deposit Insurance Corporation (KDIC), which was tasked with managing Imperial Bank, has refused to return the documents and electronic tax registers (ETR) machines that were in Mr Janmohammed’s offices.

The firms say that they have been unable to collect rent from two of their buildings in Nairobi and Mombasa because tenants have refused to accept rent invoices without ETR receipts.

They hold that Mr Janmohammed managed some of their affairs including rent collection from some of their properties.

Sandview owns a building in Upper Hill that it has leased to UAE’s Dubai Islamic Bank which plans to enter the Kenyan banking industry this year.

Upperview owns the building that housed Imperial Bank’s Mombasa headquarters.

Alnashir Popat, a director in the two firms claims that they stand to lose rent of over Sh421 million from the two buildings that had lease agreements with Dubai Islamic Bank and Imperial Bank expiring in 2021. Mr Popat is also a shareholder of collapsed Imperial Bank.

“The plaintiffs are precluded from making direct demand for rent from Dubai Islamic Bank and Imperial Bank as they are unable to generate the ETR receipts required to be sent with the invoices. The plaintiffs have been unable to manage their financial affairs for any of the matters assigned to the late Mr Janmohammed in respect of the management services,” Mr Popat says.

The KDIC claims Mr Janmohammed had shares in both Sandview and Uppeview, and has in a separate case asked the court to attach his stake in the two firms to recover over Sh34 billion the Imperial Bank founder allegedly pilfered through an elaborate scheme.

KDIC in its response says that the two companies are part of ongoing investigations into Imperial Bank and Mr Janmohammed and that the records are essential until detectives have completed their probe.