Arturs sought in Armenia for evading military service
Story by MUGUMO MUNENE and LUCAS BARASA
Daily Nation, Kenya
July 20 2006
Publication Date: 07/20/2006
Mr Joseph Bildad Gacheru of Immigration Department studies one of
the Artur brothers passport.
The Armenian Government is looking for the two men who posed as Artur
Sargsyan and Arman Sargsyan for evading mandatory military service,
the Kiruki team was told yesterday.
The information was relayed to the Government in April through Interpol
as detectives in Nairobi, headed by Nairobi CID boss Isaiah Osugo,
tried to unravel the mystery of the Artur brothers.
"Artur Sargsyan and Arman Sargsyan are wanted by Armenian authorities
for avoiding military services according to their laws. There is no
information on their departure or arrival. How the two came to Kenya,
nobody knows," inspector Julius Kiprotich of Kenya’s national bureau
of Interpol told the commission.
Mr Kiprotich was reading a document from Yerevan, the Armenian capital.
The information deepened the mystery of the Armenian brothers since
evidence has been tendered before the commission that the person who
identified himself in Kenya as Artur Margaryan was in fact an impostor.
According to the evidence, the actual Artur Margaryan works with
the taxation department in Yerevan and has never stepped in Kenya
or Africa.
Interpol Yerevan advised their Nairobi counterparts in April that they
had "all grounds" to believe that the men who presented themselves in
Nairobi as Artur Margaryan and Artur Sargsyan were in fact impostors.
The commission also heard that the file relating to Interalliance,
a company associated with Kensington co-director Alois Omita, had
resurfaced at the shelves in the Companies registry.
Mrs Jane Njeri, the State Counsel who heads the registry, returned to
the witness box yesterday and said that documents in the file showed
that the company had in fact changed names from Premier Global Alliance
to Interalliance International Kenya Ltd.
However, several irregularities were pointed out in the file, which
Mr Omita is expected to respond to through his lawyer Mr Gilbert
Mungu this morning.
Excerpts:
Assisting counsel Dorcas Oduor: You were to look at the contents of
the files by Interalliance. Did you get them?
Njeri: My lords, I got and I found it at the slot where it is supposed
to be.
Oduor: Was it there yesterday (Tuesday)?
Njeri: It was not when I was looking for it in the morning before I
came to the commission.
Oduor: You remember yesterday an issue was raised as to whether Premier
Global Alliance Ltd changed its name to Interalliance International
Kenya Ltd. What do you have to say?
Njeri: I have confirmed from the file that a certificate of change of
name was issued from our office on November 22, 2002. I have a copy
of the same in my file where Premier Global Alliance Ltd changed its
name to Interalliance International Kenya Ltd.
Oduor: There is a letter in your file, authoured by Mr Alois Omita
to one Anthony Macharia of K. Macharia and Company Advocates. When
is it dated?
Njeri: I have it. It is dated October 16, 2002 and is addressed to
Anthony Macharia.
The contents read; "Dear Anthony, change of name. Please refer to
our discussion on the subject matter. We would be grateful if you
would kindly change the name of our company, Premier Global Alliance
to Interalliance International Kenya. Enclosed is the certificate
of incorporation. Kindly proceed." It is signed Yours Faithfully,
Alois Omita.
Oduor: Was it stamped in your registry?
Njeri: It was not.
Oduor: Every correspondence is supposed to be stamped?
Njeri: It is either supposed to be stamped or there should be a
receipt for payment of the fees.
Oduor: You realise that the letterhead is already using the name
Interalliance International?
Njeri: Yes.
Oduor: Has Alois Omita described his position in that company?
Njeri: From this letter, there is no description.
Oduor: Do you have a copy of a special resolution?
Njeri: I have the original special resolution to change the name from
Premier Global Alliance and it says that at an extra-ordinary meeting
of the members of the company duly convened and held at LR209/70/2
Museum Hill Nairobi on November 20, 2002, the following resolution
was passed. The name of the company is changed to Interalliance Kenya.
Oduor: The resolution is signed by who?
Njeri: The person describes himself as a director.
Oduor: Look at Form 208 in Kensington; the one signed by the advocate
Anthony Macharia.
Njeri: This is the form that is sworn by an advocate declaring that
he witnessed the formation of the company. He has signed it.
Oduor: The signature on the special resolution resembles that of
Anthony Macharia Advocate?
Njeri: It resembles.
Oduor: Is Anthony Macharia a director in Inter Alliance or Premier
Global?
Njeri: He’s not my lords.
Oduor: But he has described himself as a director?
Njeri: Yes the person signing the special resolution has described
himself as a director and this form should actually be authenticated
by a written signature of an officer of the company who should be a
director or the company secretary.
Oduor: In that letter he describes himself as a director and in
Premier Global he’s not a director?
Njeri: He’s not a director.
Oduor: Look at the letter from Omita, it’s dated October 16. Is it
referring to any special resolution?
Njeri: It refers to a discussion not a special resolution.
Oduor: And you realise that it comes before the special resolution
which is signed by Macharia.
Njeri: Yes. The letter is dated October 16 and the special resolution
is dated November 20.
Oduor: Logically the resolution should precede the letter?
Njeri: That should be the logic.
The 43rd witness, Police Inspector Julius Kiprotich, was sworn in. He
was led in evidence by assisting counsel Warui Mungai.
Mungai: For how long have you been in the police force?
Kiprotich: Seventeen years.
Mungai: How many have you served at the Interpol?
Kiprotich: I have served at the National Central Bureau for one year.
Mungai: What happened on March 22, 2006?
Kiprotich: That was the day the Officer Commanding Interpol Mary
Ngariuko, a senior assistant commissioner of police, called me to her
office and instructed me to write a message on request from the PCIO
Nairobi area Mr Osugo to Yerevan in Armenia. She gave me a letter
which had some details. I extracted information and wrote a letter
to Interpol Yerevan asking for details requested by Mr Osugo.
Mungai: I have a letter here and I would like to know whether that
is what you wrote? If it is, read it.
Kiprotich: That’s true my lords.
>>From Interpol Nairobi to Interpol Yerevan.
"We kindly request you to give us the following information to further
our investigations;
a) Whether the two are Armenian citizens;
b) Their occupation;
c) When and how they left your country for Kenya;
d) What reasons they gave for coming to Kenya.
Attached are their passports, work permits and photographs for ease
of reference. Urgently expedite."
Mungai: Did they respond?
Kiprotich: They did, I think in April.
Mungai: What was the information?
Stolen passports, which were presented at the Kiruki commission
hearing yesterday.
Kiprotich: The information was that Artur Margaryan was born in 1973
and is the holder of passport number AF0631173 issued on October 11
2003. His first passport – number AB322223 – was issued on January
27, 1997. That he had never been to Africa including Kenya, that he
is currently in Armenia, works at taxation services in Yerevan.
Travelled twice to Sochi in Russia and once to Vurna. That he
together with Artur Sargsyan are not relatives of the Prime Minister
of Armenia. For Artur Sargsyan, he was born on May 14, 1970. On May
1, 1997, he got a passport number AB0366773. That he lost another
one number AB0366773 and applied for new one number AF0599780. That
he together with his family moved to United Arab Emirates. That
he together with his brother Arman Sargsyan are wanted by Armenian
Authorities for avoiding military services according to their laws.
That there is no information on his departure or arrival. How the
two Armenians came to Kenya, nobody knows.
Mungai: There is a letter from Armenia which is Exhibit 1(i) dated
March 18. Did you request for the information?
Kiprotich: No. The first message was drafted by senior officer on
March 15.
Mungai: Did you get to see the answer?
Kiprotich: Yes on March 18.
Mungai: Let’s first concentrate on the reply you got. Look at the
fourth paragraph.
Kiprotich: "Please be informed that we have all grounds to think
that the persons who presented themselves as Margaryan Artur in your
country is in fact another person. In this view you are requested to
make the final identification of the persons who presented themselves
with the photos we have provided.
Mungai: Do you have the photo that was presented to you?
Kiprotich: I have it.
Mungai: Did you compare with the person who presented himself as
Artur Margaryan in Kenya?
Kiprotich: No.
Meanwhile, you are kindly requested to inform us of the investigations
against them particularly whether a criminal case is instituted
against them, which body conducted the investigations, the status of
the person in subject and the details of the case. The measures for
receiving information concerning Margaryan Artur and Sargsyan Artur are
continuing and you will be informed additionally about the results."
Mungai: Do you have the photo that was presented to you?
Kiprotich: I have it.
Mungai: Did you compare with the person who presented himself as
Artur Margaryan in Kenya?
Kiprotich: No.