Mwalimu Dida Released From US Jail

Former Kenyan presidential candidate Mohamed Abduba Dida has been released from prison in the United States after serving three years of a seven-year sentence.

Dida, who contested Kenya’s top seat in 2013 and 2017, was freed on parole from the Big Muddy Correctional Center in Illinois on March 4, 2025.

According to his wife, Amina Liban, Dida is now living in Minnesota and focused on rebuilding his life and reviving his charity work.

“Yes, he was released on March 4, 2025, on parole. He is living in his house in Minnesota,” she confirmed on Wednesday. “He had started the Dida Foundation International and had completed registration just before he was arrested.”

Dida’s legal troubles began in 2021 when he was arrested following a complaint by his American wife, accusing him of stalking, issuing threats, and violating a restraining order. He was convicted on all three counts in 2022 and transferred to Big Muddy after a stint at East Moline Correctional Center.

Despite his past legal issues, Dida’s family remains supportive. “Mwalimu Dida is a family man; he has responsibilities and he takes care of them very diligently,” said his wife, Halake Amina.

She described how the family grew concerned after he suddenly stopped calling in 2022.

Before his incarceration, Dida was already working on a nonprofit aimed at uplifting underprivileged communities in both the US and Africa.

The Dida Foundation International, based in Minneapolis, was registered in 2019 and had appealed for support to promote civic and technical education.

Now out of prison, Dida is said to be searching for office space in Minnesota to restart the foundation’s activities.

“The last time we spoke, he said he wants to revive the foundation,” Liban added.