Accra: Kwabena Adu-Boahene, the former Director General of the National Signals Bureau (NSB), along with his wife, Angela Adjei-Boateng, has been arrested and detained on allegations of diverting state funds. Speaking at a press conference in Accra, Dr. Dominic Ayine, the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, disclosed details of the couple’s alleged misconduct, which involved the signing of a Government of Ghana contract for the purchase of ‘Cyber Defense System Software’ valued at seven million United States dollars.
According to Ghana News Agency, Dr. Ayine revealed that GHC39,462,480 remains with Adu-Boahene and his wife without any lawful justification or corresponding work done. The couple has been granted bail set at GHC260 million cedis. The Attorney General referred to the contract in question as the ‘GOG-ISC Contract,’ which was signed on January 30, 2020, between Ghana and an Israeli company, ISC Holdings Limited.
Dr. Ayine detailed that on February 6, 2020, Mr. Adu-Boahene transferred an initial GHC 27.1 million from the National BNC Operations Account at Fidelity Bank to his private BNC account at UMB Bank, ostensibly for the purchase of the ‘Cyber Defense System Software’ from ISC Holdings in Israel. However, the funds were instead diverted to his private company, Private BNC.
The Attorney General further explained that a review of bank accounts showed Adu-Boahene transferred GHC 9,537,520 to ISC Holdings Limited, equivalent to $1,750,000 at the time. To facilitate this transfer, Mr. Adu-Boahene allegedly attached a fraudulent copy of the GOG-ISC Contract and an invoice purportedly from ISC Holdings Limited.
Dr. Ayine informed the media that on March 18, 2020, and March 30, 2020, Mr. Adu-Boahene further transferred GHC 21 million from the National BNC Directors Account at Fidelity Bank to his Private BNC account at UMB. This brought the total transferred to his private account to GHC 49 million. Despite the initial $1,750,000 transfer to ISC Holdings, no additional payments were made to the company.
Investigations revealed that the remainder of the funds was used by Adu-Boahene and his wife for personal expenses, including transfers to third parties, personal investments, and transfers to unknown recipients. The AG stated that several companies registered by the couple are currently under scrutiny.
The Attorney General highlighted ongoing investigations into money movements in local and foreign currencies across multiple companies, prompting alerts to banks such as Universal Merchant Bank, Fidelity Bank, and Stanbic Bank. Dr. Ayine warned these banks to halt electronic money transfers, with legal consequences for any managerial non-compliance.
Dr. Ayine assured that the state is committed to pursuing all involved in criminal activities, with the full support of the President. Over 10 assets belonging to Adu-Boahene and his wife have been identified, with further asset tracking and potential charges forthcoming. The AG also mentioned the possibility of plea bargaining and utilizing some suspects as prosecution witnesses.