Capital Bank collapse: Why Mensa Otabil was not prosecuted

Alfred Tuah-Yeboah, the Deputy Attorney-General has explained why the founder and leader of the International Central Gospel Church (ICGC), Dr Mensa Otabil was not prosecuted for the collapse of the Capital Bank despite being the board chairman of the bank.

Following the incarceration of Chief Executive Officer of the defunct bank, Ato Essien, there has been criticism of the Attorney-General with a school of thought holding that Mensa Otabil was not made to face the law due to his supposed affiliations with the NPP.

The call was furthered by private legal practitioner Martin Kpebu who opined that Mensa Otabil must be made to answer questions over his supposed role in the collapse of the bank.

“People are wondering what happens to Mensa Otabil,” Kpebu said on the Key Points on TV3 on Saturday, October 14.

He added “The truth of the matter is that he is a powerful person so somehow there are biases. This amount is too colossal that we can’t say the board chair doesn’t have questions to answer.”

Reacting to the point raised by Martin Kpebu, the Deputy Attorney-General disclosed that Dr Mensa Otabil was indeed investigated and questioned.

He noted however that the A-G could not raise a docket to prosecute him as nothing untoward was found during the investigations.

“They were questioned but I will need to check when it was done”, he said on TV3’s KeyPoints program.

When pressed by the host of the show to confirm if the A-G decided not to prosecute Dr Mensa Otabil due to the unavailability of evidence to implicate him, Tuah-Yeboah said “based on the investigations and evidence available way back in 2017, that was what we had but it’s not closed as long as it’s a criminal case.”

Ato Essien was convicted for his involvement in the misappropriation of an astounding GH¢90 million from the bank's coffers.

The verdict came after a heartfelt assessment of the impact of Essien's actions on the bank's depositors and the nation by the judge.

The judge stated, "The convict demonstrated sheer greed in his desire to own another bank besides Capital Bank Ltd and left no stone unturned through subterfuge and deceit with pure criminal intent to set up Sovereign Bank Ltd. Being in a position of trust, he was expected to have demonstrated a sense of responsibility and true fidelity. He had no cause, whatsoever, to steal such gargantuan sums of money."

Justice Kyei Baffour, who holds the position of a Justice of the Court of Appeal with additional responsibilities as a High Court judge, also emphasized that Essien's actions caused immense hardship for countless individuals during the collapse of Capital Bank.

PEK

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