A middle-aged-man was on Tuesday morning arraigned before a Kisumu Chief Magistrate Court to answer to charges of stealing tree seedlings.
The accused, Paul Okonye, denied the charges before Chief Magistrate Esther Maina for the offence he is alleged to have committed in May 28, 2015.
Okonye also faced a second count of resisting arrest by Police. The court heard that on the material day, the accused who is a Migosi resident in Kisumu stole more than 100 different tree species seedlings meant for sale.
The seedlings had been paraded along the Kisumu-Kakamega Highway awaiting possible customers to purchase.
The Prosecution Desk said that Okonye used a sack to ferry the seedlings to his house where he later transferred them to Obunga for sale.
The owner of the seedlings reported the matter to Kondele Police Station where investigation were launched culminating in the arrest of the accused.
However, Okonye told the court that the trees had been placed on his land and he was just creating some space for cultivation.
The prosecution Desk however, dismissed the claim saying it was a public space. Magistrate in her statement dismissed both parties saying that they await full hearings before giving full testimonies.
Okonye was released on a cash bail of Sh5,000 with a surety of a similar amount.