When Irish national Joel Patrick Fitzpatrick sold everything he had inherited from his late mother and relocated to Kenya, he envisioned a quiet retirement on the Kenyan coast with Martha Wanjiru Muhoro, the woman he had met online.

Using the proceeds from the sale of his inheritance, Mr Fitzpatrick planned to build a home, establish businesses and start a new life together with his newfound love in Watamu, Kilifi County.

In preparation for the move, he transferred millions of shillings to Kenya to buy a palatial home, land and vehicles, believing he was laying the foundation for his future. Instead, less than a year after arriving in Kenya, the former US Navy serviceman finds himself entangled in three separate court battles far from home.

One is a divorce case, while the other two are civil suits in which he is seeking to recover property he claims was acquired using money from his inheritance and to freeze a bank account through which he says he channelled his life savings while still living in Ireland.

The latest dispute concerns ownership of a prime property in Watamu. Mr Fitzpatrick has sued Ms Muhoro, claiming he transferred Sh25 million to enable the purchase of the property on his behalf.

Joel Patrick Fitzpatrick, an Irish national, claims he lost millions of shillings after relocating to Kenya, allegations that are the subject of a case before the High Court in Malindi in this photo taken on July 12, 2026.

Photo credit: Brian Ocharo| Nation Media Group

On Tuesday last week, the Environment and Land Court in Malindi granted Ms Muhoro two weeks to file her response after her lawyer informed the court that he had only recently filed a notice of appointment, which was yet to be approved. The court directed both parties to file and exchange their documents before the matter returns on October 12 for directions on the ruling date.

"The status quo is extended until then," the judge ruled.

In the application filed on June 24, Mr Fitzpatrick is seeking temporary orders restraining Ms Muhoro, her agents or anyone acting on her behalf from selling, transferring, charging, leasing, renting out or otherwise dealing with a parcel of land in Gede measuring approximately 0.106 hectares, pending determination of both the application and the main suit.

He is also seeking orders restraining any attempt to evict him from the property. The matter was certified urgent, with the court allowing the Irish national to remain in occupation of the house pending determination of the dispute.

Court documents describe Mr Fitzpatrick as a business, political and environmental consultant.

Multi-million transfers

In a separate civil suit, he has sued Ms Muhoro and Family Bank seeking to recover more than Sh35.8 million, which he says he wired into her account while he was still living in Ireland.

According to court documents, Mr Fitzpatrick's journey to Kenya began after he met Ms Muhoro on an online dating platform in 2023.

He says he informed her that he had never married, had no children and intended to relocate permanently from Ireland after inheriting 75 per cent of his late mother's estate, including a valuable property in Dalkey, County Dublin. His brother, he says, inherited the remaining 25 per cent.

"As the majority shareholder, I was under no pressure to sell the properties and was living quite comfortably as a landlord," he states in his affidavit.

As the relationship blossomed, Mr Fitzpatrick says he entrusted Ms Muhoro with researching immigration requirements, property ownership, business registration and other practical arrangements to facilitate his relocation.

Before leaving Ireland, he says he asked her to identify land where they would build what he believed would become their matrimonial home.

"I supported her as the woman I expected to marry. I took her in as my future wife, best friend, confidant and business partner," he says.

According to the court papers, Mr Fitzpatrick transferred substantial sums of money to finance the purchase of land, construction of a permanent home and acquisition of two motor vehicles.

He alleges that Ms Muhoro persuaded him to transfer all the money into her bank account on the understanding that she would hold it in trust until he relocated to Kenya and opened an account in his own name.

He lists a series of transfers made in 2025, including €250,000, equivalent to about Sh36.9 million, on April 11 for the purchase of land and a pickup truck. He says this was followed by four transfers of €10,000 each between April and May, €15,000 in September and a final transfer of €226,860 (about Sh33.4) million in October, which he describes as the remainder of his life savings and inheritance.

Mr Fitzpatrick further claims that although a sale agreement was prepared for one of the vehicles, his name was omitted from the ownership documents despite having financed the purchase.

Joel Patrick Fitzpatrick, an Irish national, claims he lost millions of shillings after relocating to Kenya, allegations that are the subject of a case before the High Court in Malindi in this photo taken on July 12, 2026.

Photo credit: Brian Ocharo| Nation Media Group

He is now asking the court to freeze Ms Muhoro's bank account, arguing that there is a real risk the remaining funds could be withdrawn before the dispute is determined.

"I am apprehensive that if this application is not allowed then I will suffer substantial loss and damage which cannot be compensated by costs, as her action of withdrawing the monies from the account will render me poor, destitute and the entire suit nugatory," he states.

Mr Fitzpatrick says he has been reduced to a beggar, destitute and homeless because his inheritance is no longer under his control. Ms Muhoro, however, paints a very different picture.

Six-months then legal battle

In her defence, she admits falling in love with the foreigner, receiving the millions but denies witholding and/or misappropriating any of it, insisting every transaction was made openly, with Mr Fitzpatrick's knowledge and in furtherance of their plans as a couple.

She says she resigned from her teaching job in Qatar at his request and relocated to Kenya in December 2023 to prepare for their wedding. The two solemnised their civil marriage on July 23, 2025.

Court documents show that less than six months after their civil marriage, their seemingly promising union descended into a bitter legal dispute.

According to her response, the initial 250,000 euros equivalent to Sh36.25 million, was used to buy a Toyota Hilux for Sh5.35 million, pay Sh250,000 in legal fees, Sh150,000 for insurance, Sh80,000 for land survey costs and Sh24.7 million for the purchase of the Gede/Dabaso property.

She says both the land and the vehicle were registered in her name because Mr Fitzpatrick, being a foreign national at the time, lacked the documents required to register them in his own name.

"Mr Fitzpatrick had no reason and has no reason to doubt me as I spent the money prudently, in accordance with our discussion and agreement," she states.

Ms Muhoro further admits receiving another €266,860 (Sh39.3 million) in five separate transfers between April and October 2025 but says the money financed projects they undertook together, including installation of solar backup systems, construction of a perimeter wall, home improvements, vehicle upgrades, furniture purchases and travel.

She says they lived together at the Gede/Dabaso property as their matrimonial home and jointly purchased a second vehicle, a Subaru, for Sh2.6 million after inspecting it together.

"He has concealed material facts that part of the money he is now claiming was actually transferred back to him," she says, listing nine M-Pesa transfers totalling Sh380,000.

Joel Patrick Fitzpatrick, an Irish national, claims he lost millions of shillings after relocating to Kenya, allegations that are the subject of a case before the High Court in Malindi in this photo taken on July 12, 2026.

Photo credit: Brian Ocharo| Nation Media Group

She also disputes his claim that he transferred an additional €15,000 (about Sh2.2 million) in September 2025, saying the money was instead paid directly to replace his wedding ring after he allegedly threw the original one into the Indian Ocean during a moment of anger.

According to her response, she later invested Sh15 million in a fixed deposit account with Family Bank. She maintains there was never any agreement requiring her to refund the money. By March 23, 2026, she says, the account balance had dwindled to Sh76,542.17.

According to her, the Irish national later told her he had achieved his objective of obtaining Kenyan citizenship and wanted to live alone before allegedly evicting her and her two daughters from the home.

She further claimed that the relationship deteriorated after the marriage, accusing Mr Fitzpatrick of many things including cruelty and physical abuse. She urges the court to dismiss the suit, describing it as an abuse of the court process intended to intimidate, harass and embarrass her.

Family Bank has also distanced itself from the dispute, arguing that it has been wrongly joined in what it describes as a private disagreement between Mr Fitzpatrick and Ms Muhoro.

In a replying affidavit sworn by the bank's Assistant Manager for Legal Services, Ms Joan Gachomba, the lender says its Malindi branch is not a legal entity capable of being sued and that the account in question belongs solely to Ms Muhoro.

"Mr Fitzpatrick not a customer of the bank," Ms Gachomba states, adding that Ms Muhoro opened the account in May 2024 in her personal capacity.

The bank says that as of March 25, 2026, the account held only a small balance, a figure that contrasts sharply with the millions Mr Fitzpatrick says he transferred from Ireland. It further denies any involvement in the couple's financial arrangements.

"The bank is a stranger to the relationship between the foreigner and Ms Muhoro. The bank is not aware of any of their dealings and hence should not be dragged into their dispute," the affidavit states.

The lender argues that Mr Fitzpatrick has not alleged any wrongdoing on its part or accused it of breaching any law or acting outside the account operating mandate. According to the bank, any orders the court may eventually issue can still be implemented without retaining it as a party to the proceedings.

"The bank is willing to abide by any orders issued by the court," Ms Gachomba says.

The financial institution also asked the court to strike it out of the proceedings or, alternatively, require Fitzpatrick to provide security for costs.

It argues that, by his own admission, Mr Fitzpatrick is an Irish national with no known source of income in Kenya, leaving the bank with little prospect of recovering its legal costs should the suit fail.

On those grounds, the lender urges the court to dismiss the application, maintaining that Mr Fitzpatrick has failed to meet the legal threshold for the freezing orders he seeks.

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