OSP vs Ken Ofori Atta and others: Court grants Col (rtd) Damoah permission to travel outside Ghana

The criminal case being prosecuted by the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) against former Finance Minister Ken Ofori Atta and others came up on the High Court in Accra today.

One of the accused persons, Col. (Rtd.) Kwadwo Damoah, a former Director of Customs and currently serving as the Member of Parliament for Jaman South had applied to the court to be granted permission to travel to London for some days.

The prosecution had opposed the application but the court granted Col (rtd) Damoah permission to leave Ghana between May 11 and May 15, 2026.

Col. (Rtd.) Damoah is the sixth accused person in the criminal case involving Ken Ofori-Atta and seven others in the Strategic Management Services (SMS) case.

In a case update issued by the OSP on May 7, 2026, it was explained that Col Damoah intends to travel to the United Kingdom to attend a training programme.

State prosecutors had argued that the letter supporting the request came from the Minority Caucus in Parliament and not from Parliament as an institution.

The prosecution further argued that if the trip was official parliamentary business, the endorsement should have come from the Speaker of Parliament.

It had also questioned why another Minority Member of Parliament, who was not standing trial, could not attend the programme instead of Col. (Rtd.) Damoah.

Despite the objections, the court ruled that there was no sufficient evidence to suggest that Col. (Rtd.) Damoah would abscond if granted permission to travel.

The court subsequently directed him to leave Ghana on May 9, 2026, and return on or before May 17, 2026.

The case forms part of ongoing criminal proceedings involving Ken Ofori-Atta and other accused persons being prosecuted by the OSP.