Two pastors, others of SDA Church on theft charge

Sunyani (Brong Ahafo) -- The Sunyani Circuit Court on Monday granted 200 million cedis bail each with two sureties to be justified to two pastors and three others of the Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) Church alleged to have stolen more that 19,000 US Dollars, 160 million cedis and quantities of Aluzinc roofing sheets belonging to the Church.

Pastor James Kwaku Badu, Pastor Frederic Kofi Agyei-Baah, Alfred Owusu Ansah, Treasurer/Financial Administrator, Daniel Kwabena Donkor and Kwabena Boa-Amponsem, executive members, pleaded not guilty to 12 counts of conspiracy to steal, stealing and dishonestly receiving.

The Court presided by Kofi Debrah ordered them to reappear on 17 March 2003. A sixth accused, Pastor Richard Addai Mununkum, pleaded guilty with explanation and was granted a self-recognizance bail after he had told the court that he was prepared to refund the packets of roofing sheets in his possession.

The Court also asked its registrar to write a letter to Bank of Ghana and Barclays Bank of Ghana, Sunyani Branch, to furnish it with the Church's financial position to enable it to continue with the case.

Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Alex Yartey Tawiah, the prosecutor, said on 27 June last year, a letter of complaint titled "Financial Malfeasance and Stealing at Mid-West Ghana Conference (MGC) of the SDA Church", was received by the Brong Ahafo Regional Crime Officer and was referred for investigations.

The investigations revealed that in 1998, Pastors Mununkum, Badu and Appiah Kubi Kwarteng (at large), conspired and stole 18 packets of Aluzinc roofing sheets being part of a donation from the United States (US) for the roofing of the church building.

They reportedly shared the sheets among themselves in the house of Henry Adusi Poku, a witness, at Techiman. ASP Tawiah said other malpractices were detected at MIG and were reported to the Church's Headquarters in Accra upon which a Commission of Inquiry was set into the case.

Only Pastor Mununkum was subsequently dismissed after the inquiry even though there was enough evidence against the other accomplices. The prosecutor added that the Commission's findings infuriated the complainants in the case hence the request for criminal investigations.

Six packets of the sheets, being the share of Pastor Kwarteng, now in the USA, were retrieved from Isaac Ayiah, a witness, who was taking custody of them at Hausua, near Techiman, while four packets and 17 singles of the sheets out of the six packets, being the share of Pastor Mununkum were also retrieved from the house of a witness in the case, on the instructions of Pastor Badu, who is his elder brother.

ASP Tawiah said MGC had 19,121 US dollars in its accounts at the Barclays Bank Ghana Limited in Sunyani but this was allegedly withdrawn by Pastor Badu, Pastor Adjei-Baah and Owusu Ansah and changed at the black market rate.

The three upon arrest alleged that they had deposited the money at the Bank of Ghana, Sunyani in the form of treasury bills. He said when they were asked to produce documents covering their claim they refused, insisting that they would only do so after they had been arraigned before a court and the Bank also on request declined to disclose any information to the police.

The prosecutor said the accused also conspired and stole 160 million cedis belonging to the Conference after the former Administrator of the MGC had handed over to them the session at Techiman.

The three later told the congregation that the financial position of 160 million cedis read at the session was a misinformation. In 1997 and 2001 the Conference allocated 28 packets of Aluzinc roofing sheets for work on a branch at Aworowa, near Techiman, which was headed by Owusu Ansah, but according to Samuel Yeboah, Treasurer of the branch, only 22 packets were received and the remaining six were not accounted for.

ASP Tawiah said the three accused also allocated 28 packets of roofing sheets for projects at Brodi, near Sampa in 1997 and 2001 and when the police visited the area in their investigations, Elder George Okra, an Administrator confirmed having received some packets of the roofing sheets but refused to surrender way-bills and documents on them.

The prosecutor said Pastor Badu sent his younger brother, Kwabena Donkor, to collect six packets of roofing sheets from Poku at Techiman in a Peugeot caravan to Kintampo.

He said Pastor Badu in 1998, bought four packets of roofing sheets at a cost of 1,700,000 cedis from Pastor Adjei Baah and investigations revealed that he used the items to roof the house of one Daniel Kuma at Techiman.

ASP Tawiah added that Boa-Amponsem dishonestly received four packets of the roofing sheets from Pastor Adjei-Baah and other Elders of Sunyani New Town Church, which was contrary to the Conference's working policy. He said evidence would be led to prove all the charges against each of the accused persons.