A 28-year-old man has lost a bid to stop his criminal trial over allegations of making false vaccination certificates and forging vaccine stamps allegedly linked to Wilson Airport.
The High Court in Nairobi dismissed an application seeking to terminate the criminal proceedings, allowing the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to proceed with the case before the Kahawa Law Courts.
According to a statement by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), the accused faces charges of making a false document.
The prosecution alleges that between July 1 and August 8, 2025, Desmond Ogutu, jointly with others who have not been brought before the court, made six international vaccination certificates purporting to have originated from a Children’s Hospital without lawful authority.
"He also allegedly forged six injectable polio vaccine impressions on international vaccination certificates purportedly issued by Port Health Services at Wilson Airport, Nairobi, with the intention of defrauding and passing the documents off as genuine for official purposes.," the prosecution stated.
In challenging the charges, the suspect argued that police officers unlawfully raided his home without a search warrant and recovered documents that were subsequently relied upon as evidence against him.
He contended that evidence obtained in violation of his constitutional rights should not be used in the criminal proceedings.
He also denied knowledge of the documents allegedly recovered during the operation.
The DPP opposed the application, citing Section 57 of the National Police Service Act, 2011, which permits police officers to enter premises without a warrant in specified circumstances, subject to constitutional safeguards.
The prosecution argued that the law allows warrantless entry where obtaining a search warrant could jeopardise an investigation.
The court's decision to dismiss the application clears the way for the criminal case to proceed, with the allegations against the accused to be determined during the trial.
According to the ODPP, the man was arrested by detectives from the Transnational Organised Crime Unit (TOCU) over the alleged production of false health documents and stamps linked to Wilson Airport.
He had sued the Chief Magistrate’s Court at Milimani, the Inspector General of Police, the DPP and the Director of Criminal Investigations in a bid to challenge the criminal proceedings.
The case raises questions about the circumstances under which the documents were allegedly produced and the legality of the police operation challenged by the accused.
The accused has not been convicted of the offences, and the allegations remain subject to proof in court.
