Buyer of Tuju's contested Karen property exposed in ongoing court battle

Former Rarieda MP Raphael Tuju has filed a fresh court case, this time against the Registrar of land and the buyer of his Karen restaurant, in an escalation of his row with the East African Development Bank (EADB).

Although the buyer of Dari Limited in October 2024 had been kept a secret, The Standard can reveal that Ultra Eureka Limited is the mystery buyer of the property in an auction by Garam Investments Auctioneers.

For this reason, Tuju has sued EADB, Garam, Eureka, the land registrar and the Attorney General.

He claimed that the auction violated court orders barring EADB from selling the high-end property to recover a contested Sh1.5 billion loan.

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Tuju claimed he had informed the Lands ministry about the court order.

He then filed a second case this time arguing that Ultra Eureka had informed his tenants that it was the new owner.

“Despite full notice of the court orders, which were presented for registration at the Lands Registry, the plaintiffs have discovered that the Defendants deliberately refused to comply with the said orders, instead proceeding to illegally and irregularly register a transfer by Chargee in favour of the firth defendant purportedly on February 18, 2025,” his lawyer Victor Mabachi argued.

According to Tuju, Justice Wayua Mong’are had issued orders barring Garam, Knight Frank Valuers and the regional bank disposing of the property dubbed Entim Sidai Wellness Sanctuary and Tamarind Karen and Dari Business Park.

“The said orders preserve the status quo and prevent any further dealings with the subject properties pending the hearing of the plaintiff’s application dated October 25, 2024, which remains undermined,” he said.

He asserted that the orders were extended on October 20, 2024 and subsequently on February 6, 2025.

Tuju stated that the order bring the transfer was booked for registration on November 29, 2024. According to him, the title at the time had not been converted to a new register.

He stated that his lawyers then wrote to the ministry asking that the registration be done manually. He also asked that the deed file be kept under the custody of the Chief Land Registrar to prevent dealings.

Tuju said his lawyers were verbally informed that the orders could not be complied with as they were not against the registrar.

He said notwithstanding the orders, Ultra Eureka lawyers A. E. Kiprono had claimed ownership of the land, arguing it had been transferred to them after an alleged purchase during the auction on October 1, 2024.

“The plaintiff are aware that no auction took place on October 1, 2024, and any purported purchase by the 5th defendant through a process conducted by the second defendant at the behest of the first defendant is fraudulent and irregular,” he said.

According to Tuju, the alleged auction was orchestrated by the bank officials. He claimed that he had reported the same at the Karen Police Station.

He stated that persons from Ultra Eureka, accompanied by a Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) official, attempted to invade the property on January 21, 2025, claiming ownership but were unsuccessful.

He stated that on March 4, 2025, he discovered that the title to the property had been converted in favour of Ultra Eureka. He said that his lawyers had written to the registrar informing him that it violated court orders.

“No response has been received to the said letter, nor have the registration applications been registered or rejected,” said Tuju.

The politician wants the court to intervene and quash the alleged sale.