The Accra High Court judge hearing the case in which former Chief Executive of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), Dr Mustapha Abdul-Hamid, and five others are standing trial for allegedly extorting more than GH¢291,574,087.19 and $323,407.47 from oil marketing companies has said he cannot postpone the case during the legal vacation, insisting he will continue to hear it until the Chief Justice revokes the warrant empowering him to sit.
This followed a plea by lawyers representing five of the accused persons for the case to be adjourned to October, within the legal vacation period spanning August and September.
Defence counsel told the court that he had booked a flight to travel outside the jurisdiction to attend to pressing personal commitments during the vacation, while other lawyers said they too had prior commitments and asked that the case be adjourned to October.
But the presiding judge, Justice Francis Apangabuno Achibonga, said that if the cases were to be heard only in October, there would have been no need for the Chief Justice to issue a warrant directing the court to sit during the vacation.
He said the court would continue to sit and conduct hearings as directed until the warrant was revoked by the Chief Justice.
The judge added that since the lawyers seeking to travel operated from a law firm, the firm ought to have a lawyer available at all times to represent the accused persons.
He, however, gave the accused persons the opportunity to decide on their legal representation by the next adjourned date, August 17, 2026, adding that if they remained unrepresented by then, the court would proceed with the Case Management Conference and the accused would represent themselves.
Background
The Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has accused Dr Abdul-Hamid and two NPA officials — Mr Jacob Kwamina Amuah, a coordinator of the Unified Petroleum Pricing Fund (UPPF), and Ms Wendy Newman, a staff member of the authority — of conspiring to extort GH¢291,574,087.19 and $323,407.47 from bulk oil transporters and oil marketing companies between 2022 and December 2024.
The prosecution said the scheme targeted players in the petroleum downstream sector and involved the alleged unlawful collection of funds under various pretexts.
Three other executives of companies alleged to have helped conceal the proceeds have also been charged.
They are Mr Isaac Mensa, a director of Kel Logistics Limited; Mr Bright Bediako-Mensah, a director of Kel Logistics and Kings Energy Limited; and Mr Kwaku Aboagye Acquaah, a director of Kings Energy Limited.
All the accused persons have pleaded not guilty and have been granted bail.
The OSP alleged that between 2022 and December 2024, Dr Abdul-Hamid, Mr Amuah and Ms Newman devised and executed a scheme to extort money from bulk oil transporters and oil marketing companies.
Prosecutors said the plan was conceived by Dr Abdul-Hamid, who allegedly presented it to Mr Amuah, with Ms Newman later recruited as the primary conduit for receiving the proceeds.
The OSP further alleged that Mr Amuah directly handed GH¢24 million to Dr Abdul-Hamid between January and December 2024, which prosecutors say formed part of the proceeds of the alleged extortion scheme. Within the same period, Dr Abdul-Hamid is also alleged to have directly received GH¢230,000 from one haulage company.
Of the total GH¢291,574,087.19 and $323,407.47 allegedly extorted, an amount was said to have been channelled through Ms Newman, who then allegedly distributed the funds on Mr Amuah's instructions.
Investigators said Mr Mensa, Mr Bediako-Mensah and Mr Acquaah, together with another associate identified only as Adjei, worked with Mr Amuah and Ms Newman to establish and operate three companies through which the alleged proceeds were laundered.
The prosecution said the funds were moved through various financial transfers and used to acquire movable and immovable property, allegedly to conceal or disguise the illicit origin of the proceeds and evade the legal consequences of the unlawful activity.
The OSP stated in the charge sheet that Mr Amuah and Ms Newman transferred various sums of money directly to the companies and funded the purchase and construction of houses, the purchase of trucks for the oil distribution business, and the construction of fuel filling stations.
