The High Court in Nairobi has rejected a bid by a 28-year-old man accused of forging international vaccination certificates and polio vaccine stamps allegedly linked to Wilson Airport, allowing the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to proceed with the criminal case.
Desmond Omollo Ogutu had asked the court to terminate the proceedings, arguing that police officers unlawfully searched his home without a warrant and recovered documents subsequently relied upon by the prosecution.
The ruling clears the way for his trial at the Kahawa Law Courts, where he faces charges of making a false document and forgery. The court’s decision does not amount to a finding of guilt, and the allegations remain subject to proof during the criminal proceedings.
6 vaccination certificates at centre of forgery case
According to the prosecution, the alleged offences occurred between July 1 and August 8, 2025, when Ogutu, jointly with other persons not before the court, allegedly made six international vaccination certificates purporting to have originated from Gertrude’s Children’s Hospital without lawful authority.
He is also accused of forging six injectable polio vaccine impressions on international vaccination certificates purportedly issued by Port Health Services at Wilson Airport in Nairobi.
The prosecution alleges that the documents were intended to deceive by making them appear genuine for official purposes.
The case concerns documents bearing the names of health institutions and airport port-health services, placing the authenticity of the certificates and vaccine stamps at the centre of the criminal proceedings.
Accused challenges police search without warrant
In seeking to stop the prosecution, Ogutu argued that detectives had raided his home without obtaining a search warrant and that the documents allegedly recovered during the operation should not be used against him.
He denied knowledge of the documents and maintained that evidence obtained in violation of his rights should be excluded from the criminal case.
The DPP opposed the application, citing Section 57 of the National Police Service Act, 2011, which permits warrantless entry into premises in specified circumstances, subject to constitutional safeguards.
The prosecution relied on provisions allowing such entry where obtaining a warrant could jeopardise an investigation.
The dispute therefore centred on the legality of the police search and whether the criminal proceedings should be halted over the accused’s objections to the way the evidence was obtained.
By dismissing the application, the High Court allowed the prosecution to proceed. The precise scope of the court’s reasoning and any findings on the admissibility of specific evidence should be distinguished from the decision to terminate the case.
Penal Code charges facing Ogutu
Ogutu is charged with making a false document, contrary to Section 347(a), as read with Section 349 of the Penal Code, and forgery, contrary to Section 352(a).
He 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.
The accused had challenged the criminal proceedings by suing the Chief Magistrate’s Court at Milimani, the Inspector General of Police, the DPP and the Director of Criminal Investigations.
The case was prosecuted by Abdalla Lyaga.
With the application to terminate the proceedings dismissed, the prosecution can continue at the Kahawa Law Courts. Ogutu remains entitled to the presumption of innocence unless and until the charges are proved in court.
