The court document filed by the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has disclosed that the sacked former Sanitation Minister has an undeclared real estate business.
According to the Office, Cecilia Abena Dapaah “was engaged in undisclosed and undeclared real estate business in which she obscured and concealed the transactions by employing the use of aliases to avoid detection of the actual ownership of the business and properties, while cleverly receiving proceeds of the transactions in her bank account and investments.”
This is the latest in an attempt by the Office to confirm the seizure of suspected tainted properties belonging to Madam Dapaah.
Not long ago, the OSP seized millions of cash from the former Minister and ordered the freezing of some bank accounts with over ¢40 million transactions.
An Accra High Court refused to confirm the seizures and freezing order and directed the OSP to return the amounts to Cecilia Dapaah.
The Special Prosecutor complied but is back in court seeking to get the seizure confirmed.
Dead men don’t send cash
Exclusive copies of documents secured by JoyNews and filed in court by the Office of the Special Prosecutor reveal that the former Minister allegedly has millions of cedis which the OSP says she could not prove the source.
The filing also includes fresh allegations that an account belonging to the dead brother of the former Minister was still sending money to Cecilia Dapaah’s accounts.
“The said Nana Akwasi Essan died in January 2022 and there is no record domiciled at the financial institutions of probate or letters of administration granted to personal representatives).
“Strangely, there are active transfers from the deceased person’s bank account to that of the first respondent’s account”, the filing alleges.
The OSP continue to allege that “as recently as September 19, 2022, and May 23, amounts of ¢10,450 and ¢11,280 respectively were transferred, supposedly by the deceased brother to the first respondent (Cecilia Dapaah).”
The High Court will hear the case on October 18, 2023, as the Special Prosecutor makes another attempt to have the seized amount of money and the freezing of the Bank accounts confirmed.
Prove source of cash reserve
“The OSP is investigating the former Minister for corruption and other corruption-related offences, including the use of public office for profit in relation to the ownership and source(s) of suspected unexplained wealth in respect of the first respondent – by reason of the fact that the first respondent’s lawfully disclosed source of income, as a Minister of State at all relevant times; outstripped by large cash sums of money associated with the first respondent and secreted and locked up in the residence of the respondent and further by suspicious transactions and volumes of transactions in respect of the bank accounts and investments of the first respondent; and the efforts by the second respondent, the husband of the first respondent, to cover up for the first respondent in respect of he ownership and source of the said funds.
Background
Two house helps working for Cecilia Abena Dapaah and her husband, Daniel Osei Kuffour are facing charges at an Accra Circuit Court, for allegedly stealing monies and items worth millions of cedis from the couple’s residence at Abelemkpe in Accra.
The accused individuals, 18-year-old Patience Botwe and 30-year-old Sarah Agyei have been charged with conspiracy to commit a crime and five counts of stealing.
The alleged thefts occurred between July and October 2022.
During this period, the house helps allegedly stole personal effects belonging to Madam Cecilia Abena Dapaah, including assorted clothes valued at GH¢95,000, handbags, perfumes, and jewellery worth $95,000.
Additionally, Ms Botwe is accused of stealing six pieces of Kente cloth worth GH¢90,000 and six sets of men’s suits valued at US$3,000, which belong to the minister’s husband.
Furthermore, three other individuals, identified as Ms Botwe’s current and former boyfriends and her father, are also facing charges for allegedly being involved in the crime. They have been respectively charged with dishonestly receiving GH¢1 million, GH¢180,000, and GH¢50,000.
According to court proceedings, the stolen monies and items belonged to Madam Cecilia Abena Dapaah and her husband, taken from their bedroom in their residence.
Cecilia Dapaah’s dead brother’s account still sending money to former Minister…
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