Ex-Family Bank officials charged with offences linking them to the National Youth Service (NYS) scandal are seeking to be allowed to settle the matter of court.
The court heard this when the officials appeared before it for the hearing of the case scheduled for today which was adjourned even with two witnesses availed.
Through lawyer Cecile Miller who represents the bank, the accused told the court that they are in communication with the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) with the aim of an out of court settlement.
The defense asked for an adjournment on grounds that they would like to await the determination of an appeal in which they are seeking to block the continuation of the criminal case.
In the case, former Family Bank Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Peter Munyiri, former KTDA branch manager Oscar Nyaga, with other six officials were charges with nine counts of offences.
Among the counts the accused face is failure to report unusual transactions carried out by the NYS scandal primary suspect Josephine Kabura Irungu’s bank accounts.
The bank itself is accused of handling the money and not reporting it to the directors.
In the appeal, the financial institution says the move to charge its employees was selective treatment.
According to Family Bank, all the NYS money was released from the CBK vaults, therefore, blaming the banks for handling the loot was unfair as the regulator gave the green light for the stolen money to be released.
The defense termed the criminal charges as double punishment since CBK had already fined it Sh 1 million for failing to report suspicious transactions in relation to NYS yet still facing criminal charges.
The matter will be heard on 5th 6th and 7th December 2017.
