The former Director General of the National Signals Bureau, Kwabena Adu-Boahene and his wife, Angela Adjei Boateng, have sued the Attorney General (AG) and Minister of Justice, Dr Dominic Ayine, and the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) over a GH¢200 million bail for both of them.
The couple remains in custody as they contest what their defense team calls “unjustifiably harsh” bail conditions set by prosecutors.
Samuel Atta Akyea Esq, lead lawyer of the two, argues that the GH¢120 million bail demand for Adu-Boahene and GH¢80 million for his wife are not only excessive but also appear designed to circumvent constitutional detention limits.
According to the lawyers, their clients’ rights are being infringed upon.
Background
Last week, EOCO arrested the former Director-General at the Kotoka International Airport (KIA) upon his arrival from London on a British Airways flight. The wife was also arrested when she visited EOCO to check on the husband.
He is accused of embezzlement of state funds.
According to the AG, Dr Ayine, the arrest has to do with his alleged involvement in financial misconduct relating to a $7 million cyber defence system contract.
The disclosure was made during a press conference on Monday, 24th March, where Dr Ayine provided details on the circumstances surrounding the case.
The contract, valued at $7 million, was intended to bolster Ghana’s capacity to detect, prevent, and respond to cyber threats, data breaches, and digital espionage. However, investigations suggest that funds allocated for the project were diverted for personal use.
Dr Ayine explained that in his role as Director of the NSB, Adu-Boahene signed the contract on 30th January 2020 on behalf of both the government of Ghana and the National Security Ministry.
The agreement was made with an Israeli firm, RLC Holdings Limited, to supply the cyber defence system software. The procurement was seen as a crucial measure to enhance the nation’s digital security infrastructure.
Despite the significance of the project, the Attorney-General revealed that Adu-Boahene engaged in unauthorised financial transactions.
On 6th February 2020, just days after signing the contract, he allegedly transferred an initial sum of GH¢27.1 million from the National Signals Bureau’s Fidelity Bank account to a UMB private account of BNC, the private firm he set up with his wife. This transaction was reportedly documented as payment for the cyber defence system software.
He is accused of laundering the funds through real estate investments in Accra and abroad.
Source: myjoyonline
