The authorized battle towards former Director Normal of the Nationwide Indicators Bureau (NSB), Charles Adu Boahene, has taken a dramatic flip, along with his authorized staff interesting a courtroom choice after alleging that 83 pages of an important financial institution assertion had been lacking from the prosecution’s paperwork.
The lawyer for the accused, Samuel Atta-Akyea, has accused the prosecution of a “deficit of proof” and stated the choose is obstructing their entry to important info wanted for his or her defence.
The case, which has garnered nationwide consideration, sees Adu Boahene, his spouse, and two others dealing with 11 prices, together with stealing, cash laundering of GH¢49.1 million in state funds, willfully inflicting monetary loss to the state, and abuse of public workplace.
The prosecution, led by the Lawyer-Normal’s Division, alleges that Adu Boahene, whereas serving because the Director of the NSB, illegally transferred funds from a state-owned account to a personal firm.
In an interview on JoyNews on Friday, August 29, Mr Atta-Akyea expressed his frustration with the courtroom’s proceedings.
“The Lawyer Normal withheld about 83 pages of a financial institution assertion that the Lawyer Normal has filed earlier than the courtroom,” he stated. “So you might see a deficit of proof by what the Lawyer Normal filed earlier than the courtroom.”
In keeping with Atta-Akyea, the defence staff instantly raised an objection, questioning the whereabouts of the remaining pages.
He claims the choose “blocked it,” stopping the prosecution from offering the lacking paperwork.
“The choose did not need them to convey it. That is the place we’re, truth. These are all info in case you are a journalist following this story and that’s why we’ve appealed the choice of the choose that the choose mustn’t block proof that the accused individuals require to arrange their defence and even use these items of proof to cross-examine the witnesses who’re being referred to as,” Atta-Akyea acknowledged.
The defence’s attraction highlights a core tenet of prison regulation in Ghana, the place the accused has a constitutional proper to a good trial, together with entry to all proof that’s each inculpatory (factors to guilt) and exculpatory (factors to innocence).
Mr Atta-Akyea maintains that the lacking financial institution assertion pages might maintain the important thing to exonerating his shopper, or on the very least, enable for a strong cross-examination of the prosecution’s witnesses.
The dispute over the financial institution statements is just not the primary time the defence has raised points with the prosecution’s disclosures.
In an earlier ruling, the courtroom partially granted a movement filed by Atta-Akyea for additional disclosures, ordering the Ghana Police Service to offer the defence with info on a BMW automobile linked to the case.
The prosecution had alleged that Adu Boahene had not declared the automobile as an asset and had imported it, claims the defence has denied.
However the Deputy Lawyer-Normal, Justice Srem Sai, has rejected the claims.
In a submit on X on Thursday, August 28, he dismissed recommendations that the Lawyer-Normal’s workplace had misplaced proof within the Republic v Adu-Boahene trial.
“The Lawyer-Normal’s workplace has not misplaced any proof concerning the continued Republic v Adu-Boahene prison trial,” he wrote.
Learn additionally: Deputy Attorney-General refutes claims of lost evidence in Adu-Boahene trial
In keeping with him, all related paperwork had been intact and had been duly filed earlier than the courtroom.
“As of June 18, we had filed all of the paperwork which we intend to depend on to show the costs towards the 4 accused individuals within the case.
“The paperwork embody contracts of sale, financial institution wire switch information, checking account statements, firm registration paperwork, property possession information and buy receipts, INTERPOL stolen automobile information, investigative warning statements and cost statements of every accused particular person, information of asset non-declaration, a circulation chart of cash actions by means of a posh internet of financial institution accounts, and testimonies of our three witnesses.”
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DISCLAIMER: The Views, Feedback, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform don’t essentially symbolize the views or coverage of Multimedia Group Restricted.
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