Former GREDA boss' case adjourned to April 22

The Financial Division of the Fast Track High Court, hearing the case involving the former GREDA boss, on Monday adjourned proceedings to April 22.

The court was forced to adjourn the case after the prosecution failed to present its next witness.

Prosecuting, Mrs Stella Ohene Appiah, a State Attorney, said she was not able to contact her next witness who travelled to Kenya, and was expected back last Thursday.

She prayed the court for a short adjournment, saying she had two other witnesses to call in the case.

At the last sitting, the defence counsel ended its cross-examination of the first prosecution witness, Mr Theophilus Botchway, Fraud Prevention Manager, Vodafone Ghana, and he was discharged by the court.

The former GREDA boss, Dr Alexander Kofi Tweneboah, is facing charges of providing electronic communication service without licence; possessing illegal device; and knowingly, obstructing and interfering with sending, transmission, delivery and reception of communication.

Initially, the State charged the accused person for SIM BOX fraud, a charge he denied knowledge of.

Mrs Stella Ohene Appiah, a State Attorney, told the court that on January 15, a joint anti-fraud task force of the National Communication Authority, Ghana Police Service and the Telecommunication operators embarked on an operation to the accused person’s house.

She said a search in one of the rooms used as an office led to the retrieval of one SIM BOX equipment, internet modems, antenna and large quantities of SIM cards of various telecom Service Providers.

Mrs Appiah said the caretaker mentioned the accused person as the owner of the house, and also the one who used that particular office.

The State Attorney said the accused person admitted ownership of the equipment and told the Police that he was introduced into the SIM BOX business, when his businesses started going bad due to the economic condition in the country.

She said even though the accused person claimed to have been in the SIM BOX business for about two months, investigations revealed that his illegal activity had been in operation for not less than six months.

“The total revenue loss to the state and the service providers over the period amounted to 919, 296 dollars,” she said.