NIB Chief's case adjourned to Friday May 8

Accra, April 17, GNA - The case involving Daniel Charles Gyimah, Managing Director of the National Investment Bank (NIB) was on Friday adjourned to Friday May 8.

The adjournment was necessitated by the absence of the trial judge who was said to be taking part in an ongoing seminar for judges. Gyimah is facing charges of attempting to commit crime, causing financial loss to the State and forgery of documents. He has pleaded not guilty and the court has ordered him to be on his former bail, that is, GH¢500,000 with four sureties one to be justified.

The circuit court judge, Mr. D.E.K. Daketsey ordered Gyimah to be reporting to the Police every fortnight. Present at the court today were the defence team for Gyimah and the investigator of the case. At the last sitting the State preferred fresh charges against Gyimah and the Police announced that the Attorney-General's Department was going to take over prosecution from the police. Gyimah was in February this year arraigned before the court for wilfully causing financial loss to the State. Prosecuting Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) P.K. Frimpong at the last sitting took leave of the court to withdraw the charges and substituted them when the case was called. Reading out the new facts, the prosecution told the court that on May 7, 2007, in an attempt to wilfully cause financial loss to the state, Gyimah unilaterally entered into an agreement with Eland International Limited Ghana in which he used the bank as a guarantee. Based on that Gyimah issued 30 promissory notes valued at 60 million US dollars to Eland, whose secretary is his son. The prosecution said Eland contacted Iroko Security Company Limited within the period and quickly discounted the 60 million dollars and the promissory notes for 45 million dollars. On January 29, this year, the International Bank Section of NIB received a swift message requesting the bank to confirm payment of the promissory notes.

The prosecution said Gyimah was therefore notified of the irregularity of the message by head of the bank's International Banking Section. Gyimah on receipt of the notice ordered the Department to confirm and it was complied with. Meanwhile, the prosecution said, the document on the deal between NIB and Eland cannot be traced, as Gyimah claims the documents were missing from their records.

In the statement to the Police, Gyiamh admitted having guaranteed on behalf of NIB adding he made a mistake by not informing the bank's Board of Directors. Investigations revealed that several documents including a report on goods under the control of NIB for Eland as at December 1, last year had been detected as forged by Gyimah.