The Special Prosecutor, Kissi Agyebeng, says he disagrees with a court judgement requiring his office to return the money it had taken from Cecilia Dapaah.
The Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has been ordered to return all funds confiscated from the former sanitation and water resources minister to her within seven days of the ruling, according to a ruling issued on Thursday by the high court in Accra presided over by Justice Edward Twum.
On Thursday, August 17, the Office of the Special Prosecutor asked the court to uphold the order freezing two accounts owned by Dapaah on the grounds that the money in the accounts might constitute tainted property.
Additionally, the OSP asked the court to approve its decision to seize some money it found during a search of the former minister’s home. The amounts found were GHC2,730,000.00 and US$590,000.00.
In its decision on August 31, 2023, Justice Twum’s court ruled that there was no justification for the respondent (Cecilia Dapaah)’s bank accounts being frozen by the applicant, the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP).
The court additionally ruled that there was no legal justification for the account freezing, and that the freezing of such accounts cannot be confirmed in the interest of justice because it was not done so.
In response to the decision, Agyebeng stated that while his office respects the decision, it does not agree with it because it is incorrect.
“While the OSP respects the court’s decision, it disagrees with the decision of the court. First, the OSP believes that the court’s computation of the time limitation is, with respect, erroneous,” Agyebeng said.
Read full statement below:
