Hanan Abdul-Wahab Aludiba
Officials of the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) have been summoned by the court conducting the trial of former Chief Executive Officer of National Food and Buffer Stock Company Limited (NAFCO), Hanan Abdul-Wahab Aludiba, to account for some electronic gadgets seized from his wife, Faiza Seidu Wuni.
The two accused persons and companies related to them are on trial for allegedly stealing GH¢78 million from the state. They have all pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The summon followed a complaint by her lawyer, Augustine Obour that the gadgets, including mobile phones which were seized during her arrest, were not declared by the Attorney General in court filings.
According to him, all the disclosures and documents filed by the prosecution do not include any mention of the gadgets seized from her.
He said the items included iPhone 14 Pro Max, Techno phone and a non-smart phone (keypad), and a laptop belonging to her son.
“None of the items have been disclosed. Again, there’s no freezing order covering the items. The inference therefore is that they’re not needed by the prosecution or investigators,” he added.
Esi Dentaa Yankah, a Principal State Attorney, in response, said the appropriate officials would have to respond to the request made by the defence lawyer.
The court, presided over by Justice Francis Achibonga, therefore ordered officials of EOCO to appear before it to answer to the whereabouts of the gadgets.
The lawyer also raised questions about the authenticity of the documents the prosecution has disclosed and intends to rely on for the trial.
According to him, he has realised that none of the documents prosecution intend to rely on appear to be original.
Meanwhile, the court has deferred its decision on lawyers from EOCO prosecuting the case alongside state attorneys from the Office of the Attorney General (AG).
He said there are two legislations governing representation, insisting that an Assistant Staff Officer of EOCO cannot appear alongside a Principal State Attorney from the AG’s Office.
Madam Yankah disagreed with the objection, noting that an Assistant Staff Officer is an official of EOCO which has since been issued with a fiat in the form of an Executive Instrument for its officers to carry out prosecution on behalf of the Attorney General.
Hanan Abdul-Wahab, Faiza Seidu Wuni, together with Richard Sam-Asante, who is said to be on the run; the Ludiba Foundation and Energy Partners Limited, two companies related to the couple, have been charged by the Attorney General for allegedly stealing money from the state through a criminal enterprise.
The five are facing 24 counts of charges of stealing, fraudulently causing financial loss to the state, abetment of stealing, money laundering, defrauding by false pretences, intentional dissipation of public funds, using public office for profit, dishonestly receiving and intentionally causing financial loss to the state.
According to the charge sheet, Mr. Abdul-Wahab allegedly stole GH¢50.879 million from NAFCO by transferring it to James Tieku-Apawu, operating under the name Sawtina Enterprise, between February 2017 and February 2025.
Faiza Seidu Wuni allegedly laundered a total of GH¢34,608,834.62 knowing at the time of taking the money that it was acquired through a criminal enterprise.
She is also accused of dishonestly receiving GH¢4,401,831.58 from NAFCO between 2018 and 2023, knowing very well that the money was appropriated through stealing.
Richard Sam-Asante, on the other hand, has been charged for conspiring to steal GH¢5,495.748.36 from the National Food & Buffer Stock Company Limited between February 2017 and February 2019.
The couple have pleaded not guilty to the charges and have been granted a total of GH¢150 million bail by the court.
Court documents indicate that the Economic and Organised Crime Office’s preliminary investigations revealed that almost GH¢78 million had moved from the bank accounts of NAFCO to Sawtina, and that these funds were transferred in a series of 86 transactions between October 2019 and September 2023.
They further indicate that the transfers were made from NAFCO into Sawtina’s bank account with the Republic Bank, Labone branch, where Abdul-Wahab maintains several bank accounts, with the same bank relationship officer managing all the accounts.
The Attorney General says the relationship officer will testify for the prosecution in the course of the trial.
Subsequent investigations revealed that somewhere in 2018, James Tieku-Apawu, the then Regional Manager at NAFCO, approached Abdul-Wahab and informed him of his desire to buy and supply foodstuff to NAFCO, and he agreed.
Abdul-Wahab allegedly had James Tieku-Apawu’s business – Sawtina – quickly approved as a licensed buying company and immediately started trading with NAFCO.
Under interrogation, Tieku-Apawu allegedly admitted receiving a total of GH¢69,616,226.29 from NAFCO into Sawtina’s bank account, court documents point out.
He, however, explained that only about 20% of that amount was for genuine supplies he made to NAFCO, while EOCO’s investigations reveal that the remaining 80% of the bank transfers was for no supplies.
Investigations have established that more than GH¢50 million was transferred from Sawtina’s bank account back to Abdul-Wahab directly, to his other businesses, to his wife’s businesses, and for the acquisition of landed properties in prime areas in Accra.
The document further indicate that Abdul-Wahab allegedly caused GH¢4,401,831.58 to be paid from NAFCO’s funds to Alqarni Enterprise, although the company which is the personal trading name of his wife, Faiza Seidu Wuni, never supplied foodstuff to NAFCO.
BY Gibril Abdul Razak