Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Dr. Dominic Ayine, has justified the ongoing detention of former Deputy Director-General of the National Signals Bureau (NSB), Kwabena Adu Boahene, by the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO).

Addressing the press, Dr. Ayine outlined the findings of a comprehensive investigation into Adu Boahene’s financial dealings, which revealed significant irregularities in the management of state funds. According to the Attorney-General, evidence gathered so far implicates him and his wife, Angela Adjei-Boateng, in the diversion of public funds under the guise of securing a cyber defense system for the state.

Dr. Ayine explained that on February 6, 2020, Adu Boahene authorized the transfer of GHC27.1 million from the National BNC’s account at Fidelity Bank to a private BNC account at UMB. The stated purpose of this transaction was to facilitate the acquisition of cyber defense system software from ISC Holdings in Israel for $7 million.

Further scrutiny of the bank records showed that Mr. Adu Boahene instructed the private BNC to transfer GHC9,537,520, equivalent to $1,750,000 at the time, to ISC Holdings. However, the Attorney-General revealed that "Mr. Adu Boahene fraudulently attached a copy of the government of Ghana ISC contract as well as an invoice, which he held as an invoice issued by ISC Holdings."

In addition to the initial transaction, two further payments amounting to GHC21 million were transferred from the National BNC Director’s account at Fidelity Bank to the same private BNC account at UMB on March 18 and March 30, 2020. These payments were recorded as funding for the cyber defense system.

However, upon closer examination, it was discovered that although a total of GHC49 million had been moved into the private BNC account—an amount equivalent to $7 million at the prevailing exchange rate—only a fraction of the money had been paid to ISC Holdings, raising concerns about the whereabouts of the remaining funds.

The Attorney-General further disclosed that investigations into the private BNC account revealed a pattern of suspicious withdrawals and transfers to third parties that had no connection to the cyber defense system purchase.

"A review of transactions on the private BNC account revealed that after the payment of $1,750,000, Mr. Adu Boahene and his wife applied the rest of the funds for their personal use, making transfers to local third parties. The difference between GHC49 million, being the money Mr. Boahene transferred from the bank accounts of the National BNC to his private BNC, and GHC9.5 million, being the money he actually paid to ISC Holdings for the software, ended up with him and his wife. The sum of GHC35,462,480 of taxpayers’ money went into their private pocket," Dr. Ayine disclosed.

Further investigations into Adu Boahene’s financial activities revealed that BNC Communications Limited, the company central to the transactions, is ultimately owned by another entity, Advantage Solutions Limited. Additionally, Dr. Ayine stated that at least ten other companies are linked to Adu Boahene and his wife through an intricate network of shareholding and directorships.

"For purposes of investigation, the names of those companies will not be disclosed," he added.

Meanwhile, Deputy Attorney-General Dr. Justice Srem-Sai has assured that Adu Boahene and his wife are being treated fairly while in custody. Their detention by EOCO, he stated, is necessary to facilitate further investigations and ensure accountability in the handling of state resources.