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Businessman Yagnesh Devani was yesterday remanded at the Kilimani Police Station, where he will spend the night before being presented in court this morning to plead to graft charges in the Triton oil scandal.

Devani was arraigned in an anti-corruption court following a warrant of arrest issued in 2009.

But Chief Magistrate Thomas Nzyuki declined to grant him bond, pending the charges.

“In the interest of fair administration of justice, I find it not appropriate to release him on bond, especially after he was brought to court with a warrant,” the magistrate ruled.

Devani is expected to be charged afresh in relation to the Triton case. Prosecutors told the court that they intended to file new charges against Devani so that they do not interfere with a case against other accused persons that is concluding.

Lucrative tender

That proceeded in the absence of Devani, who was on the run.

The Triton scandal was allegedly orchestrated by Devani’s company, Triton Petroleum Ltd.

The company, of which he was executive chairman, had won a lucrative tender to supply oil under a system designed to help local oil companies.

The scandal surfaced in 2008 when Triton was implicated in a fraudulent disposal of oil products, leading to the loss of about $70 million (Sh7.6 billion) for various banks and investors, including KCB and Fortis Bank.

The gist of the scandal is that Triton was granted access to oil reserves stored at the Kenya Pipeline Company’s facilities without the necessary approvals.

The case involved charges of conspiring to defraud several petroleum companies by purporting that Triton had diesel ready for sale at KPC storage in Kipevu.