The court has withdrawn criminal charges against former Social Health Authority (SHA) chief executive Elijah Wachira in a case involving the alleged misappropriation of Sh17.5 million from the public health insurer.
Milimani Principal Magistrate Daisy Mutai approved the prosecution’s application to withdraw the charges on October 6, 2026, under Section 87(a) of Kenya’s Criminal Procedure Code.
Wachira was charged alongside Arthur Otula, Rosemary Daraja, and other suspects over the alleged loss of Sh17,591,473 at SHA headquarters in Nairobi between October 2024 and May 20, 2025.
The case stemmed from allegations that SHA lost Sh17.59 million through fraudulent medical claims submitted under the name of Archprime Medical Clinic, a private facility based in Oyugis, Homa Bay County.
In October 2025, prosecutors alleged that the suspects had conspired to obtain the money by submitting falsified medical claims between October 2024 and May 2025.
Wachira and Robert Ingarisa, both former SHA chief executives, faced a misappropriation-of-funds charge under Section 48(2) of the Social Health Insurance Act.
Other accused persons faced charges including conspiracy to defraud, falsifying health information, uttering false documents, and dealing in alleged proceeds of crime.
The prosecution alleged that the accused falsified medical records to support payments for treatment that was not lawfully payable.
In November 2025, Wachira appeared before a Nairobi court and denied the misappropriation charge. The court then released him on cash bail of Sh300,000, with an alternative bond of Sh500,000 and a surety of a similar amount.
The prosecution applied to withdraw the charges under Section 87(a) of the Criminal Procedure Code, and Magistrate Mutai allowed the application on October 6, 2026.
The provision allows a public prosecutor to withdraw from a prosecution before a subordinate court, subject to the court's consent.
Under the section, withdrawal before the accused is called upon to make a defence generally results in discharge, while withdrawal after the accused has been called upon to make a defence results in an acquittal.