Kevin Onyona, the owner of the popular Swahili Village restaurant in Washington DC, has been ordered by the court to pay Sh. 68.6 million ($526,973) to reopen the business.

This settlement comes after a lawsuit filed by D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb in 2023. He claimed that Swahili Village violated Washington DC labour laws by not paying overtime wages, distributing tips, or providing the legally required paid sick leave.

The restaurant also stood accused of stealing wages and tips from 72 employees who worked as servers, hosts, food runners, bussers, and bartenders.

As a result, Kevin Onyona and his partner Emad Shoeb will have to pay the amount to cover restitution, penalties, and other fees to settle the wage theft case.

Kenyan owner of US-Swahili Restaurant in court for paying workers Sh. 720 per hour

Attorney General Brian Schwalb, in his lawsuit, described the Swahili Restaurant case as an ‘egregious heist’, stating it was no accident but rather a deliberate business plan by Onyona and his COO, Emad Shoeb.

The court-directed compensation will be divided in this manner: Sh. 33.8 million ($260,000) will go to the 72 restaurant workers and an additional Sh. 33.87 million ($260,600) will cover the costs of distributing worker compensation and paying penalties to Washington DC.

“It is unacceptable, and illegal for businesses to steal from their hardworking employees, depriving them of the full benefits they have earned and are legally entitled to. Employers that do so are not only exploiting their workers but are gaining an unfair advantage over their competitors who play by the rules,” A.G Schwalb stated.

“This is a significant win for dozens of Swahili Village workers who were mistreated and continues our office’s commitment to combatting wage theft in the District of Columbia,” he added.

Sources close to the matter reveal that most Swahili Village employees are people of colour, particularly young immigrants.

As part of the agreement, Swahili Village owners Onyona and Shoeb admitted no liability. The Kenyan owner agreed to settle the case to reduce the burden of legal fees and focus on running his business.

“I have to make some hard decisions now. It’s not really looking very good for me. I can tell you that,” he said.

Onyona shared with a publication that he will need to let go of about 20 staff members and borrow money to meet the agreement’s obligations.

He opened the restaurant in the capital in 2016, offering authentic East African cuisine and atmosphere.

Former President Uhuru Kenyatta attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony, praising him then as the man who brought a taste of Kenya to the US.