Party queen charged with defaulting Sh386K alcohol bill at Hilton hotel
A 47-year-old South African national was on Wednesday charged with failing to pay for drinks she ordered at the Hilton Hotel in Nairobi.
Anne Margaret Champion, who appeared before Chief Magistrate Francis Andayi, denied the charge of obtaining credit by false pretense.
She was accused of ordering drinks worth Sh386, 988.66, equivalent to USD3, 914, at the top city hotel.
The prosecution told court that she allegedly committed the offense on diverse dates between July 22 and August 14.
“The accused falsely pretended that she was in a position to pay for the hotel bills a fact which she knew was false,” court heard.
FLIGHT RISK
The prosecution also told the court that she is a high flight risk and that she has no fixed abode in the country, hence she should not be freed on bond.
But her lawyer told the court that she can avail her identification as well as travel documents before the court.
Her lawyer also explained that the bill was allegedly USD 6,000 and that what she had been charged with was the balance which she was yet to clear.
The Magistrate told the foreigner that she could be given bond terms simply because it is a right in Kenya for every accused person, however, he was afraid that since she has no place of stay, she would be thrown on the streets.
“It is not the nature of such hotels to detain clients. If you are given bond and you fail to pay, we have nice facilities where we will have you kept until the hearing of your case,” said the Magistrate.
NOT ABANDONED
Ms Champion nodded as the Magistrate spoke to her in a manner suggesting that she was keenly taking the details and when asked if she had any relatives around who would assist her, she insisted that she had not been abandoned.
“Yeah, it’s not good if the court throws me to the streets. I have a relative called George but he has not abandoned me. He has been very supportive all through,” she said.
She was to face another charge of being in the country unlawfully but the court was told that the immigration law do not require South Africans coming to Kenya to have Visas.
The woman, who was born in 1970 and came into the country in June, explained that she has a passport which had been taken by police officers at the time of her arrest.
The court ordered that she be released on a bond of Sh 100,000.
Her case will be mentioned on August 28 but the trial is expected to kick off on September 4.
