Stanbic Bank and its CEO Joshua Oigara have gone to war with the DCI over an eight-year-old Sh722 million aviation money dispute.
A bitter Sh722 million money dispute has exploded into a full-blown scandal after Stanbic Bank Kenya and its Chief Executive Joshua Oigara accused the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) of weaponising criminal summons to interfere with a long-running commercial battle.
The bank has rushed to the High Court, arguing that the DCI’s move is not about crime, but about reviving a dispute that regulators already buried years ago—and at the worst possible moment.
Summoned While With the President
Court papers reveal that Oigara was summoned by the DCI’s Banking Investigations and Fraud Unit on a day he was attending the Inua Biashara MSME Exhibition at Kenyatta International Conference Centre, alongside President William Ruto.
Stanbic says the optics were no coincidence.
The summons alleged fraudulent false accounting, a charge the bank insists is recycled, misleading, and meant to apply pressure as a related civil case unfolds elsewhere.
CBK Had Already Closed the File
According to Stanbic, the same complaint was filed years ago by aviation firm Air Afrik Aviation Limited before the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK).
The regulator, the bank says, threw out the complaint, finding that Stanbic acted lawfully when it reversed money that had been credited in error.
Despite that, Air Afrik later filed a fresh civil suit before Commercial Court Judge Nixon Sifuna, which is still pending.
Stanbic now claims the DCI’s entry into the dispute is a backdoor attempt to tilt the scales.
The 2016 Transaction That Started It All
The controversy traces back to February 2016, when Air Afrik banked with Stanbic’s South Sudan branch.
Stanbic says it received advice from the Bank of South Sudan indicating its settlement account had been credited with USD 7.2 million on Air Afrik’s behalf.
Relying on that advice, Stanbic credited Air Afrik’s account. The aviation firm then withdrew about Sh101 million.
Days later, the bombshell landed: the money had never actually arrived.
‘We Paid With Our Own Money’ — Stanbic
Stanbic says it realised it had effectively credited Air Afrik using its own funds after the South Sudan central bank failed to remit the money.
The lender froze the account, blocked further withdrawals, and informed Air Afrik that the remaining balance would be reversed.
Multiple meetings followed, involving the bank, the airline, and South Sudan authorities—but Stanbic maintained it had no obligation to bankroll Air Afrik.
That position was later upheld by the CBK, according to the bank.
Now the DCI Steps In — Eight Years Later
Fast forward eight years, and the DCI has issued fresh summons requiring Oigara to appear at its Kiambu Road headquarters to record a statement.
Stanbic argues that:
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The matter is purely commercial, not criminal
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The regulator already cleared the bank
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Oigara was not even employed by Stanbic at the time of the transaction
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Criminal summons are being used to cripple the bank’s defence
“This is an abuse of power dressed up as investigation,” the bank argues in court filings.
High-Stakes Showdown Looms
The High Court will now decide whether investigators can pursue the matter or whether the summons amount to harassment through criminal process.
Behind the legal arguments lies a deeper question:
Is the DCI probing crime—or being dragged into a corporate war over hundreds of millions of shillings?
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