A senior manager at National Commercial Bank of Africa (NCBA) Bank’s Kisii branch was arraigned in court over an alleged Ksh52 million heist inside the institution.

According to a statement by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) on Friday, October 3, Philip Rotich Kiprono, the branch operations manager, was charged with 134 criminal counts ranging from theft by servant to forgery and money laundering.

Kiprono was alleged to have siphoned Ksh52,404,084.95 from the bank between December 2022 and October 2024, while entrusted with overseeing operations. 

The money trail, investigators claim, was masked through forged documents and illicit transactions.

“He was charged with multiple offences, including theft by servant, acquisition of proceeds of crime, possession and use of proceeds of crime, as well as forgery and uttering false documents.

“The offences are said to contravene provisions of the Penal Code and the Proceeds of Crime and Anti-Money Laundering Act, 2009,” ODPP stated in part.

Kiprono denied all charges before Senior Principal Magistrate Benard Obae Omwansa. Prosecutors, led by Senior Assistant DPP Solomon Njeru, urged the court to impose tough bond conditions, citing the massive sums involved.

The magistrate will rule on bond on October 9, 2025, with a pre-trial hearing set for October 16, 2025. For now, Kiprono remains locked up at Kisii Prison.

NCBA Bank had previously accused Kiprono of abusing his position to orchestrate a fraudulent scheme that targeted high-value clients, including a Catholic Church account held at the bank.

Court filings showed that several customers lost millions in the scam. Among the victims were businessman Neel Gudkas, who lost Ksh14.7 million, the Catholic Diocese, which was defrauded of Ksh9 million, and a bishop who also lost Ksh9 million.

Investigators alleged that Kiprono intercepted client transfer instructions and instead redirected the money into accounts controlled by accomplices, before channeling the funds back to himself.

The ODPP had told the court that even after his suspension, Kiprono continued preying on customers, with more complaints from Kisii branch clients emerging against him.

“There is fear that the amount might go higher as the investigations continue. The respondent, while on suspension, continues to defraud customers, taking the fact that the customer still knows he is on duty,” the ODPP told the court in November last year.