Big hunt for Kwame Addo

The Daily Guide reports that officials of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) are poised to track down three key suspects involved in alleged shady deals to assist in the ongoing investigations into the affairs of the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT).

The three, the controversial arms and ammunitions dealer, business tycoon and member of the Board of SSNIT Mr. Augustus Kwame Addo, his wife Mrs. Benigna Audrey Addo and Mr Isaac Nana Wiredu, the Managing Director of Worae Farms Limited are being hunted not only to assist in some specific issues but also to answer preliminary charges of Conflict of Interest, Fraudulent Breach of Trust and Fraudulently Causing loss of money amounting to billions of cedis to the State. The specific issues being investigated against the three are sale of Singer House and a huge parcel of land at Odupon-Kpehe in the Ga District of Greater Accra.

The facts of the Singer House sale are that both SSNIT and one Mawuli Ababio bid the same amount during the tender, Mysteriously the offer was given to Mawuli, but then the cheque used in paying belonged to Game Marketing Enterprise, a Company owned by the wife of Kwame Addo who is also a member of the SSNIT Board.

Mawuli bought the house for ?1.5 billion only to sell it back to SSNIT for ?2.6 billion. He claims he took a loan from Gama Marketing and so he paid back that money but then all other evidence points to a sort of circular sale or insider trading which is a criminal offence.

The Odupon Land Sale appears as more interesting where a huge chunk of land purchased for ?30 million was later sold for ?2.3 billion. Kwame Addo, a fat NDC financier comes into this story for the simple reason that he paid for the land from the Chiefs and elders of Odupon under questionable pretences, promises and projections.

Two months ago Kwame Addo and his wife disappeared into thin air when the police swooped on an arms depot they own to look for illegal stockpile of arms. When last week the SFO issued a public announcement for them to appear to be quizzed, a letter from lawyer Owusu Fordjuor claiming to represent Mr Kwame Addo said his client was ill and would be present at the appropriate time to assist in the investigations; no mention was however made of his wife, Audrey nor their whereabouts.