In a recent press conference, Attorney General Dr. Dominic Akuritinga Ayine revealed that Kwabena Adu Boahene – the former Director General of Ghana’s National Signals Bureau (NSB) – and his wife, Angela Adjei-Boateng, have been implicated in a complex fraud scheme siphoning roughly GH¢111 million in state funds. Court filings and official documents show the couple allegedly orchestrated two separate scandals to loot public money. Also charged in connection with the case are banker Mildred Donkor and Advantage Solutions Limited, entities that the prosecution says were used to launder the stolen funds. The accusations involve bogus contracts, falsified payments, and illicit transfers designed to conceal the misuse of government contracts and accounts.
US$7 Million Cybersecurity Contract Fraud
The first scheme centers on a January 2020 contract with RLC Holdings Limited, an Israeli cybersecurity firm. Dr. Ayine says that on January 30, 2020, Adu Boahene signed a US$7 million agreement for defensive software. However, only US$1.75 million of that amount was paid to RLC. The remaining GH¢39.5 million (about US$5.25 million) was allegedly diverted into the account of BNC Communications Bureau Ltd., a private company owned by Boahene and his wife. On February 6, 2020, Adu Boahene transferred another GH¢27.1 million from the NSB’s Fidelity Bank account into the couple’s BNC account at UMB Bank. According to the Attorney General, the official paperwork labeled this transfer as a legitimate payment under the cybersecurity contract, hiding the fact that the money was being rerouted to the Boahene’s private firm.
Banker’s Role and Money-Laundering Network
Mildred Donkor, a former relationship officer at UMB Bank, is identified as the third accused. Court documents allege that Donkor served as a director of Advantage Solutions Limited – a company used to obscure the trail of the funds. The Attorney General’s filings state that money moved from the NSB into BNC was then cycled through a complex web of firms ultimately controlled by Advantage Solutions. Investigators traced the embezzled money to luxury assets: properties in Accra, Kumasi and London were purchased, and high-end vehicles were acquired, effectively funding the couple’s lavish lifestyle. Although Donkor initially denied involvement, evidence shows she was on the board of every company in the laundering chain and actively participated in the day-to-day operations of the scheme.
Charges and Legal Proceedings
The cybersecurity contract case has resulted in a total of 11 criminal charges. The Attorney General’s office has filed counts against the accused as follows:
Kwabena Adu Boahene: Stealing, defrauding by false pretences,
wilfully causing financial loss to the state, using public office for profit, and money laundering.
Mildred Donkor: Conspiracy to commit money laundering, and money laundering.
Advantage Solutions Limited: Conspiracy to commit money
laundering, and money laundering.
Dr. Ayine noted that additional charges related to the Ghana Water Company scheme (described below) will be filed in the coming weeks as investigations continue.
GH¢1.5 Million Ghana Water Company Payment Scheme
The second scandal involves the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) and was uncovered by the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO). According to the Attorney General, GWCL was tricked into making monthly payments of up to GH¢1.5 million to BNC Communications – funds that were supposed to pay for Internet services from the NSB. The original contract called for biweekly payments of GH¢650,000 to the NSB’s communications bureau, but Adu Boahene gave GWCL the account details of his private company instead. Over time, more than GH¢62 million was transferred to BNC under the guise of these service payments, with no verifiable evidence that the contracted work was ever performed. Dr. Avine confirmed that criminal charges related to this GWCL scheme will be pursued in a separate case.
Thanks for following…@Khalid Azure Yakubu @ccvamedia.com