A Kisumu businessman charged with illegally obtaining a motor vehicle was on Wednesday acquitted at the State's request.
Director of Public Prosecution’s office set free Rana Shoukat Ali on grounds that the prosecution did not have enough evidence to try him.
The application for withdrawal of the charge of obtaining a vehicle by false pretense was submitted before resident magistrate Eric Obina.
The application cited lack of vital documents from Kenya Revenue Authority as main reason for withdrawal.
A letter from Kisumu County CID commandant said the documents could not be secured. Ali had denied the charge and the matter was due for hearing.
The particulars of the charge were that in March 2009, Ali tried to register a car valued at Sh1.6 million in the pretext of having genuine documents.
The said motor vehicle, a Toyota Station Wagon, was allegedly stolen from one Sultan Khan.
He was said to have presented a logbook that belonged to another person when he took the vehicle for registration.
Ali was also facing a second charge of threatening witnesses in the case not to testify against him with the motive of having the case withdrawn.
In an earlier hearing, Kisumu DCIO Henry Ndombi told the court that Ali was still under investigation to for the second charge.
The threats probe was however yet to filed in court. Those allegedly threatened included the complainant, Mr Khan and a Kisumu-based journalist.