Former Ghanaian Minister’s Assets Under Joint Probe by Anti-Graft Body and FBI
Harare — The Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in the United States have launched simultaneous investigations into the actions of Cecilia Abena Dapaah, the former minister for sanitation and water resources, and her associates, while preserving the HTML tags.
The primary focus of these investigations will be on their assets and financial transactions within the United States and Ghana. The OSP and FBI aim to determine the legality of the money owned by Dapaah and her colleagues in relation to the transfer of funds between Ghana and the United States.
“The Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation have concurrently initiated inquiries into the activities of Cecilia Abena Dapaah, the former Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources, and her associates. The main objective of these investigations is to examine their assets and financial transactions within the United States of America. This collaborative effort seeks to establish the lawfulness of Ms. Dapaah and her associates’ wealth, both in terms of funds transitioning from Ghana to the United States and vice versa,” stated the Office of the Special Prosecutor-Ghana.
Established in 2017, the OSP is an anti-corruption entity in Ghana responsible for investigating and prosecuting corruption allegations involving influential individuals, including public officials. The FBI, on the other hand, is the domestic security and intelligence agency of the United States which handles the investigation and prosecution of offenses related to bribery, financial fraud, and other forms of corruption.
The OSP initiated an investigation into Dapaah for corruption-related offenses after discovering that she possessed over U.S.$1 million in her residence. Subsequently, two housekeepers employed by Dapaah and her spouse, Daniel Osei Kuffour, were charged with theft of goods and cash worth millions of Ghana cedis from their Abelenkpe property. The former minister’s home was searched by the OSP, leading to the seizure of the cash and freezing of her cedi and dollar bank accounts for further investigation.
Following this, the anti-corruption body filed an application with the High Court seeking to freeze and seize the former minister’s bank accounts, as they were believed to contain tainted assets, according to OSP officials. However, the application was denied, and the OSP was instructed to return the seized property within seven days.
