wakimani
Elder Lister
Fai Amario, born Peter Gilbert Njoroge Ng’ang’a in 1954 in Banana, Kiambu County, was a Kenyan alcohol distiller, winemaker, and businessman who rose from an impoverished background to build a multimillion-shilling enterprise. After studying winemaking at the Wine Institute in Rehovot, Israel, he returned to Kenya and established a factory in Naivasha that employed over 200 people and produced brands like Pooler, Medusa, Amario’s Sherry, Uhuru 2000, Kata Pingu, Mahewa, and Cantata. At his peak he owned the Amario Factory, Den Hotel, and extensive property in Naivasha, Nairobi, Thika, Embu, and Taita Taveta, with assets estimated at more than Ksh 400 million.
His career was marred by controversy, including 1996 murder accusations over the death of depot manager Gitau Karago, who was found with a six-inch nail in his head, and a 2004 police raid on his home that uncovered unlicensed firearms and dismantled vehicles. In 2005 he was convicted of robbery with violence and leading a car theft syndicate, and sentenced to nine years at Kamiti Maximum Prison, though he was released after three years. While in prison he said he abandoned money-focused ambitions and turned to advocating for prison reform. Amario died in July 2010.
His career was marred by controversy, including 1996 murder accusations over the death of depot manager Gitau Karago, who was found with a six-inch nail in his head, and a 2004 police raid on his home that uncovered unlicensed firearms and dismantled vehicles. In 2005 he was convicted of robbery with violence and leading a car theft syndicate, and sentenced to nine years at Kamiti Maximum Prison, though he was released after three years. While in prison he said he abandoned money-focused ambitions and turned to advocating for prison reform. Amario died in July 2010.
