Kenyan athlete Kipchoge Kaino-champion and silver medalist of the 1968 summer Olympic games, champion and silver medalist of the 1972 summer Olympic games – became involved in the case of corruption.
A two-time Olympic champion and honorary member of the International Olympic Committee is accused of having participated in the embezzlement of funds intended for Kenyan athletes at the 2016 Rio Olympics when he was Chairman of the Kenyan Olympic Committee. That money was part of more than $ 5 million provided to the Kenyan Olympic Committee by the Kenyan government to Fund the Kenyan team in Rio, Fox 13 reports.
According to investigators, Kaino headed the Olympic Committee, which was dominated by corruption.
78-year-old Kano became one of seven former Olympic and government officials named suspects in the investigation. Two other high-level officials of the Kenyan Olympic committees were named, as well as former Kenyan sports Minister Hassan Vario and three Ministry officials who worked under his leadership.
Seven of them are accused of stealing more than 200 thousand dollars, spending more than 150 thousand dollars for unused air tickets to Rio, overpaying benefits in the amount of almost 150 thousand dollars and spending tens of thousands of dollars on “unauthorized persons”.
The attorney-General of Nordin Haji said that the Directorate of criminal investigation (DCI), a division of the special crimes is investigating the case with the end of 2016. The Prosecutor’s office stressed that” satisfied with the fact that there is sufficient evidence ” to now initiate criminal proceedings against seven with many factors of corruption and abuse of office.
One of the most revered runners in Kenya participated in Saturday’s announcement.
Kano gold in the 1500 metres at the Olympic games in Mexico in 1968 – 50 years ago – paved the way for decades of Kenyan dominance of distance runners. He was named to the international hall of fame in athletics in his first year in 2012 along with such as Jesse Owens, Carl Lewis and Sebastian CoE, the current President of the IAAF.
Kano was also honored at the opening ceremony in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, the first Olympic Laurel award winner for his service to the Olympic movement.
Now he and the rest until the end of Monday report in the headquarters of the DCI or will be issued warrants for their arrests.
Kano didn’t answer the charges.
In August, the Secretary-General of athletics Kenya and a member of the IAAF Council David Akeo was banned for life global training around the IAAF for the appropriation of hundreds of thousands of dollars of sponsorship money paid to him by the Federation of Nike.
Prosecutor Haji said he also ordered further investigation into the Olympic Committee’s use of his Nike sponsorship funds.
