Kenyan finance minister arrested on graft charges

Kenyan Finance Minister Henry Rotich was arrested on Monday on suspicion of financial misconduct related to the construction of two dams. That is an unprecedented detention of a sitting minister for corruption in a country notorious for graft.

The charges against Rotich stem from a police investigation into the misuse of funds in a dam project overseen by Italian construction company CMC Di Ravenna. the director of public prosecutions said Rotich and 27 co-accused face eight charges, ranging from conspiring to defraud and financial misconduct. The minister and other officials will have to resign immediately. Rotich denied any wrongdoing in a large newspaper advertisement in March. CMC denied wrongdoing.