Prosecution on failed banks coming soon - Special Investigation Team

In a matter of weeks, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted to probe the seven collapsed banks will be in the news, as prosecutorial action is taken against those responsible for the financial mess.

A source close to the team while disclosing this to DAILY GUIDE anonymously regretted that some Ghanaians are exerting what he said ‘undue pressure’ on the team to prosecute those found culpable.

“Where rule of law is prevalent as it is under the current political dispensation, due process must be exhausted before turning to the courts. Rushing to court only to lose cases does not create a good impression about the calibre of professionals tasked with tackling the subject under review,” he said.

“Such pressures question the President’s long-cherished belief in rule of law,” he continued, adding “do we make cases up against perceived perpetrators only to go and fail in court when put to the test? The answer is a big NO! We are professionals and we must live up to that huge calling.”

He indicated that financial investigations must be distinguished from ordinary crimes; the mode of their investigations differs vastly.

“It demands more skillful, professional and technical approach to ground culpability. For instance, a single conduct by a perpetrator may result in countless number of charges. In financial investigations, what is key is the paper trail. Every competent investigator would not skip this and rush cases of this nature to court,” he declared, pointing out that “it is not like assault where you know your perpetrator offhand, with the victim being rescued by witnesses and the perpetrator not denying. Financial investigations, on the other hand, involve investigations transcending borders and agencies.”

Following the intervention of the apex bank in the matter of seven failed banks the President, through the Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Miss Gloria Akuffo, constituted SIT to take over the investigations relating to the financial institutions.

The 11-member team was appointed and inaugurated on 17th September, 2018, by the Attorney-General and Minister for Justice in consultation with the Minister for the Interior, Minister for National Security and the Inspector-General of Police.

The SIT comprises personnel from the Ghana Police Service, the Economic and Organized Crime Office, the Financial Intelligence Centre, the Office of the Attorney-General, the Banking Industry, and the Chartered Institute of Accountants. It is headed by a Deputy Commissioner of Police.