Lead counsel for former National Signals Bureau (NSB) Director-General Kwabena Adu-Boahene, Samuel Atta Akyea, has raised concerns over the 14-day deadline given by the Accra High Court for the defence to file its submission of no case to answer.
Mr Atta Akyea said the period is too short for the defence to thoroughly review the evidence presented by the prosecution and prepare what he considers a credible no-case submission.
“It is too short a time to put together a credible submission of no case,” he said in reaction to the court’s directive.
The court directed the defence to file its submission by September 25, 2026, following the prosecution’s formal closure of its case.
The prosecution called four witnesses in the trial, with its final witness, Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) investigator Frank Marshall Cromwell, completing his evidence after extensive cross-examination by the defence.
The case involves allegations of the diversion of GH¢49.1 million in state funds earmarked for the procurement of a cybersecurity system.
The prosecution alleges that three cheques totalling GH¢49.1 million were issued in 2020 and deposited into an account belonging to BNC Communications Bureau Limited, a private company linked to Mr Adu-Boahene and his wife, Angela Adjei-Boateng.
According to the prosecution, the funds were intended for the acquisition of a cybersecurity system from Israeli company ISC Holdings Ltd.
It further alleges that Mr Adu-Boahene signed a contract with ISC Holdings Ltd on January 30, 2020, before the three cheques were issued and paid into the private company’s account at Universal Merchant Bank.
During cross-examination, the defence challenged aspects of the prosecution’s financial analysis and the conclusions reached by investigators.
The defence also questioned the prosecution’s decision not to call some key officials who were part of the national security structure at the time, including former National Security Minister Albert Kan-Dapaah and the then National Security Coordinator.
Mr Adu-Boahene, his wife and the other accused persons have pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The charges include stealing, conspiracy to steal, defrauding by false pretences, wilfully causing financial loss to the state, using public office for profit and money laundering.