UT boss Walks Free From Criminal Prosecution

Chief Executive Officer of UT Holdings Limited, Prince Kofi Amoabeng, has been cleared of any wrong doing in a criminal case brought against him following the decision by the Attorney General and Minister of Justice to discontinue the case.

The Court, presided over by Justice Francis Obiri, last Thursday discharged Mr Amoabeng and lawyer John Aidoo, who was charge of abetment of crime, after a state attorney had announced that “The A-G has instructed that a nolle prosequi be entered in this case.”

According to a report in the state owned Daily Graphic, the court did not take kindly to the decision of the state to file a nolle prosequi on the grounds that it had taken the A-G a long time to initiate such an action after the case had traveled back and forth at the High Court and the Supreme Court.

Incensed by the decision of the court to struck out the case, Naa Otua Sawyne, the complainant, the nation's largest circulating paper reported, rose to her feet to enquire from the court why it had taken the decision.

A clearly dejected presiding judge according to the report told the complainant he did not know why the A-G had decided not to pursue the case.

He, therefore, gave the complainant a copy of the nolle prosequi document and told her that she could go to the A-G Department to enquire about what informed their decision.

The statement signed by the AG, Mrs Marietta Brew Appiah-Oppong, explaining the grounds on which the AG’s department took that decision, said based on petition it had received received in respect of the case, the A-G took a comprehensive look at the case and concluded that the charges against the accused persons were “wrongly placed.”

“Although this case has had a checkered history, it is the firm belief of the A-G and the Minister of Justice that the prosecution of every case must be founded on proper charges to ensure a fair trial.

“Where a prosecution is based on wrong charges it from the onset occasions a miscarriage of justice to the accused persons,” the statement said.

It added that “It is solely on these grounds that the A-G has entered a nolle prosequi in the case,” it added.

Mr Amoabeng has been accused of releasing title deed documents of the complainant, Naa Otua Sawyne, which were in the custody of his bank, to one Alexander Adjei, now deceased, to secure a loan of GH¢1,279,000 from the HFC Bank.

His alleged accomplice, Lawyer John Aidoo, is also alleged to have altered the title deeds of the complainant to reflect Adjei’s name without recourse to the complainant.

Amoabeng has pleaded not guilty to one count of fraud, while Aidoo has also pleaded not guilty to one count of abetment of crime.

Facts of the case The prosecution told the court that Ms Sawyne is a novelist who lives at Dansoman in Accra. In October 2005, the complainant decided to sell her house at Number 23 Ringway Estate in Accra and thus entered into a sale and purchase agreement with Adjei.

Per the agreement, the complainant and Adjei agreed on $280,000 as the purchase price, which was to be paid in three installments in October, November and December 2005.

Adjei paid $100,000 on October 14, 2005, as agreed, but failed to pay the remaining amount.

The prosecution said the complainant was billed to travel to the UK and for that reason she borrowed GH¢25,000 from UT Financial Services and used the title deed of her house as collateral.

As part of the loan agreement, the complainant prepared and signed a deed of assignment conditionally in respect of sale transaction with the understanding that the final transaction would be witnessed by her lawyer, Martin Nwousu, and handed over to the buyer upon full payment of the purchase price.

However, on May 22, 2006, Adjei allegedly used the complainant’s title deed, which was then in the custody of Amoabeng, to obtain a loan facility from the HFC Bank.

On September 27, 2007, the prosecution indicated, Amoabeng, without recourse to the complainant, allegedly wrote a letter to the SHC informing it that Adjei had purchased the complainant’s house and, therefore, asked SHC to assign the property to Adjei.

According to the prosecution, Aidoo, then the Solicitor Secretary of SHC, having records that the complainant owned the property in question, signed a letter of consent and gave consent to mortgage the property on July 23, 2009, an act which he (Aidoo) had no capacity to carry out.