Cecilia Dapaah
The Office of the Attorney General has withdrawn an application seeking to restrict Patience Botwe and Sarah Agyei, the two former housemaids of Cecilia Dapaah, former Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources and five other persons from disposing of properties acquired with the cash stolen from the former minister.
The prosecution, according to the court’s direction, was expected to present further details on the persons in possession of those properties so that the order could be directed at them.
But state prosecutors yesterday informed the court that they were withdrawing the application, and Justice Marie-Louise Simmons, the presiding judge struck it out as withdrawn.
Meanwhile, the parties in the trial have commenced case management which would continue on April 17, 2024 after which the trial will commence, with the prosecution calling its first witness.
The two housemaids of the former minister have been charged for conspiring and stealing a total of $410,000, €300,000 and GH¢350,000 from their former employers, leading to Madam Dapaah resigning from her position following public outcry.
Benjamin Sowah, Malik Dauda, Christiana Achab, Job Pomary and Yahaya Sumaila are facing charges of dishonestly receiving a total of GH¢4,010,000 and $14,000 from the housemaids.
Sarah Agyei is again accused of stealing assorted jewelries totaling $95,000 belonging to the former minister, bringing the total to $505,000 cash and property stolen from the former minister and her husband, Daniel Osei Kuffuor.
The Office of the Attorney General had filed the application to ensure that the properties are not sold or transferred by the accused persons or their assigns until the final determination of the various charges against them although they have all pleaded not guilty.
On March 15, 2024, Christabel Anafuri, a State Attorney, moved the motion to restrict the accused from disposing of the properties, indicating that the reasonable belief is that if the properties are not restricted they would be transferred or disposed of by the accused persons, their agents, purported assigns, successors or employees.
But Justice Marie-Louise Simmons, the trial judge, indicated that an order cannot be given in vagueness without the application properly identifying the persons in charge of the properties who are to be restricted.
She said a proper investigation could determine this as the accused persons may not necessarily be in charge but third parties who the order could be directed at.
She added that whoever that would be affected by the order needs to be made known in case the court decides to grant the application.
Properties Identified
The properties identified by court documents which the prosecution is seeking to restrict the accused persons and their assigns from disposing of include an 11-unit chamber and hall self-contain house purchased at the cost of GH¢800,000 at Budumburam by Christiana Achab.
Christiana Achab, according to court documents, also purchased a three-bedroom house at Aplaku at the sum of GH¢300,000 for Patience Botwe.
She and her husband Job Pomary also purchased a four-bedroom apartment at Kokrobite at the cost of GH¢280,000 for herself, while she also invited another suspect, Yahaya Sumaila from Tamale in the Northern Region to Accra and purchased another three-bedroom apartment at Amrahia at the cost of GH¢850,000 in his name from an amount given to her by Patience Botwe.
Christiana Achab, according to prosecuting documents, also purchased two Honda Acura vehicles at the cost of GH¢300,000 each and registered them in the name of Franklin Sarakpo, her son who is on the run.
The price of a three-bedroom mansion built by Sarah Agyei, at Budumburam was not specified.
They also bought different vehicles costing a total of GH¢1.58 million, while two properties which were rented in Tamale cost a total of GH¢225,000.
BY Gibril Abdul Razak
