Godfred Yeboah Dame, the legal representative for Hanan Abdul-Wahab, has revealed plans to file a contempt suit against the Attorney General, Deputy Attorney General, and the Director of the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI), accusing them of deliberately breaching a High Court order by orchestrating their client's arrest at the Kotoka International Airport.

This follows Abdul-Wahab’s arrest at the airport on Sunday July 5, 2026, a development being tagged as a direct violation of the court's directive.

In a statement issued on Sunday, July 5, 2026, Dame also dismissed claims made by the Deputy Attorney General that Abdul-Wahab attempted to withdraw money from a frozen Republic Bank account before leaving the country.

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The statement described as "false", assertions made by Dr Justice Srem Sai in a Facebook post on July 4, 2026, in which he sought to justify the airport arrest.

The lawyer further explained that on June 29, Justice Achibonga, a Court of Appeal judge sitting as an additional High Court judge in Accra, granted Abdul-Wahab permission to travel to the UK from July 4 to July 12 for an appointment with his optician.

He noted that the application was approved after both the prosecution and defence had presented their submissions, including those of Dr Justice Srem Sai.

Dame argued that the court's decision was consistent with established judicial practice, noting that several accused persons, including Dr Stephen Opuni, Seidu Agongo, Alhaji Collins Dauda, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson and Dr Kwabena Duffuor, had previously been granted similar travel permissions while standing trial.

The legal team also rejected allegations that Abdul-Wahab withdrew funds from an account that had been frozen before his departure.

"We challenge him to produce evidence of a withdrawal of any sum by our client from any of his bank accounts since the date of the court order," the statement said.

Dame maintained that there was no valid freezing order in force at the time of the incident.

According to the statement, any earlier freezing orders lapsed after the prosecution withdrew the previous charges against Abdul-Wahab on May 5, 2026, leading to his discharge.

The lawyers further referred to a ruling by the High Court in Adentan on May 20, 2026, following fresh charges filed on May 15, arguing that the court held Abdul-Wahab's re-arrest constituted "a fresh process," meaning there was no subsisting freezing order.

The statement added that this legal position had already been communicated to the Executive Director of the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) through a formal letter delivered about two weeks ago.

Describing the airport arrest as a "blatant and wilful violation" of the High Court's order, Dame accused the Attorney General's Office of misleading the public and unlawfully deploying the BNI to arrest his client, insisting that contempt proceedings would now be initiated against the three officials.

ANAS/EB

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