Humphrey Kariuki’s Businesses: In a shocking twist, wanted billionaire Humphrey Kariuki has been revealed to be a citizen of Cyprus. According to a report that appeared in the Daily Nation on Friday, this revelation on Mr. Kariuki was reported to have shocked detectives who are pursuing him.
“Besides his Kenyan passport, Mr Kariuki travels on a Cyrus passport, number K0627485, issued on May 19, 2016,” the Daily Nation reports. The paper further reported that Mr. Kariuki, who was outside the country at the time of the bust at his alcohol manufacturing firm, returned to the country following summons by the Director of Criminal Investigations. “We are questioning him on that issue since failure to declare dual citizenship is an offense,” Director of Criminal Investigations George Kinoti was reported saying.
Last week, though, the public was ushered into his reclusive life following a bust at one of his businesses. The bust took place at the Africa Spirits Limited company where estimated 21 million counterfeit excise stamps and 312,000 litres of illicit products were discovered. these items were all worth billions of money.
Kariuki built this brewery in 2002. “I’m proud to say that Africa Spirits Limited is the most successful indigenous alcoholic beverage company in Kenya today,” he is reported as saying two years ago.
The opening of this lid on Kariuki’s tax cheating revealed the dealings of a businessman who has been accumulating millions, if not billions of money through tax evasion.
Now, Mr. Kariuki is being accused of failing to disclose his dual citizenship. Detectives are also exploring what the new revelations about him portend for the investigations into his multi-billion tax evasion scheme.
Kariuki’s business conglomerate includes The Hub – a premier shopping mall located in the beautiful leafy suburbs of Karen in Nairobi; Dalbit Petroleum, one of the largest oil distributors in East and Southern Africa, and Great Lakes Africa Energy, a U.K-based company that is a developer and operator of power projects in Southern Africa. Kariuki is also the owner of the 5-star Fairmont Mount Kenya Safari Club, and the neighboring Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy and Animal Orphanage.
