The Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has formally handed the investigation into the financial affairs and assets of former Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources Cecilia Abena Dapaah and her colleagues to the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO).
In a statement issued on Thursday, the OSP stated that no direct and immediate evidence of corruption was discovered in the seized funds and frozen bank accounts linked to Ms. Dapaah and her associates after nearly seven months of extensive investigation by it and a parallel investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) of the United States.
“The investigation has identified strong indications of suspected money laundering and structuring. While the OSP acknowledges these suspected offences, they do not fall directly within the mandate of the Office. By law, the office cannot investigate, prosecute nor recover proceeds of crime except those that fall within corruption and corruption-related offences as defined under section 79 of the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act, 2017 (Act 959).”
“In compliance with section 3 of Act 959, which mandates the OSP to cooperate and coordinate with other law enforcement agencies, the case has been transferred to EOCO for further investigation,” the statement said.
