Former General Manager Cheekati Narsimha Rao Charged With Sh 245M Theft

A former general manager with Printing Services Limited was yesterday charged with stealing over Sh 254.4 million from his employer.

Cheekati Narsimha Rao, who appeared before Caroline Nyaguthii, is also charged with forging the signature of Indian-Kenyan author and publisher Malkiat Singh Dhillon in an attempt to falsely promote himself as a production manager at a printing company.

The charge sheet states that Rao, on various dates between January 1, 2016, and August 31, 2024, within Nairobi City County, jointly with others not before the court, being a servant of Printing Services Ltd., stole Sh 254,461,768, the property of Printing Services, which came into his possession by virtue of his employment.

He is accused of forging Malkiat Singh Dhillon’s signature on an appointment letter that falsely promoted him to the position of Production Manager at Printing Services Limited.

The letter was purportedly signed by Dhillon, who is also the Managing Director of the company.

After pleading not guilty, he requested the court to grant him reasonable bail terms, stating that he had been unemployed since April 2024 and had been unwell. He further argued that he is not a flight risk.

However, Lawyer Kimani Wachira, representing the complainant Malkiat Singh Dhillon, requested that the court compel Rao to also deposit his passport, citing previous attempts by the accused to leave the country.

The magistrate ordered the accused to be released on a bond of Sh 10 million or a cash bail of Sh 3 million pending the hearing and determination of the case.

Rao was also ordered to deposit his passport with the court and not to leave the country without prior permission.

The case will be mentioned on March 12, 2025, for further directions.