Hope Kwaku Nyadi, Detective Chief Inspector of Police told the Accra Fast Track Court on Monday that the controversial green suitcase of the Ex-Youth and Sports Minister, Mallam Yusuf Isa did not contain the missing 46,000 dollars.
Chief Inspector Nyadi, a prosecution witness, said his investigation revealed after a demonstration at the Bank of Ghana that the big envelope which contained 8,656 in smaller denomination was rather put in the green suitcase while the smaller envelope with the 46,000 dollars in bigger denomination was placed in Mallam's pilot briefcase.
Chief Inspector Nyadi who was being led in evidence by Mr Osafo Sampong, Director of Public Prosecutions, said the accused had told the investigating team that his wife Ishetu gave him 2,500 pounds for shopping. He said contrary to his claim, Mrs Isa told the team that she gave him 1,000 dollars, which she said was given to her by her brother Jabila.
Witness, who was part of the team set up to investigate the loss of the 46,000 dollars being winning bonus for the Black Stars and imprest for officials during a World Cup qualifier against Sudan, said he also discovered 2,500 pounds, 2000 cedis and an audit report during a search at the ex-minister's residence. He said the accused had earlier stated that the money and the audit report were part of the missing items when the bag was finally found; however the items were found in the house.
Mallam Isa charged with stealing and fraudulently causing financial loss to the state has pleaded not guilty. He is on a 500 million-cedi bail.
Witness said when the ex-minister was asked to produce the pilot bag as evidence, he said a friend had travelled with it. He said when he was told that a new bag had been bought, he retorted: "Oh, if you had told me earlier I would have asked my friend to bring it". Consequently with the assistance of some of the officials who travelled with the team, a similar one was bought for demonstration.
Witness said apart from the 46,000 dollars, the pilot briefcase also contained three pairs of shoes, a sponge, towel, cream, two pairs of socks and two pairs of canvas. Mr Nyadi said it came to light during investigation that on February 23, prior to his departure, Mallam Isa was seen with the bag in his office.
However, when he was interrogated, the accused said he could not remember when he sent the bag to the office and how it was brought back. Mr Nyadi said during a two-hour transit in Frankfurt the accused bought three pairs of shoes and some items with the money from the pilot briefcase.
Another Prosecution Witness, Mr Kojo Bonsu, Managing Director of Ashtaed Ghana Limited, said he travelled with the ex-minister to get acquainted with him and lobby him for the post of Chairman of the Ghana Football Association (GFA). He said when they arrived in Sudan, the ex-minister asked him to check whether his bag had arrived.
Led in evidence by Mr Sampong, Mr Bonsu, a former Adidas representative in Ghana, said the ex-minister gave him his tag number since he could not identify the bag. He said Mallam Isa's bag could not be traced and added that after several attempts with some Sudanese officials, a "irregular complaint" was lodged with Lufthansa Airline.
Cross-examined by Mr Ambrose Derry, Counsel for Mallam Isa, on what items were stated on the complaint form, witness said Mr Emmanuel Owusu-Ansah, GFA Vice Chairman, who was one of three officials checking on the missing bag, told him the ex- minister said it contained personal effects and private documents.
Asked how the ex-minister reacted when he was told that the suitcase was missing, Mr Bonsu said "he was cool tempered and later told us that he had 46,000 dollars in the green suitcase". "I advised him not to blow the issue since the bag was not missing but delayed. The morale of the players could be affected if informed and this would consequently affect their performance," he said.
Mr Bonsu said about 30 minutes before they left Sudan, they were informed by Sudanese officials that the suitcase had been found. The two Sudanese officials brought the bag, handed it over to Mallam Isa who opened it. He said when the bag arrived in Sudan, the secret security number area had been slightly dented and the handle broken.
Mr Bonsu quoted Mallam Isa as saying: "Kojo look at my bag", when it was brought to him. Witness said Mallam Isa then banged the bag and gave it to be checked in for the return flight. Mr Bonsu said the ex-minister refused to give back the irregular complaint form to the airport officials on request.
ASP Vance Baba Gariba who was in court last week to give evidence was recalled because the recording machines developed a mechanical fault. Justice Julius Ansah, the Presiding Judge, apologised to the court and expressed the hope that such problem would not reoccur.
ASP Gariba told the court during cross-examination by Mr Derry that he did not know that the suitcases could be repaired locally.
He said even though he did not know the state of the bag when it left Accra or when it arrived in Sudan, he was of the belief that Mallam tampered with it.
Sitting continues on today.
