GH¢48m NSB Trial: High Court acquits and discharges Adu-Boahene on 2 charges – Report

The Accra High Court has acquitted and discharged former Director-General of the National Signals Bureau (NSB), Kwabena Adu-Boahene, on two charges in the GH¢49.1 million cyber-security procurement case. The court, presided over by Justice Francis Apangabuno Achibonga, dismissed the charges of defrauding by false pretences and obtaining public property by false statements, ruling that the prosecution failed to establish a prima facie case against him. According to a report by Graphic Online, the ruling was delivered on Thursday, November 12, 2026, following the court's consideration of a submission of no case to answer filed by the accused persons after the prosecution had closed its case. On the charge of defrauding by false pretences, the court held that the prosecution had failed to present evidence of any representation made by Adu-Boahene that enabled him to transfer the GH¢49.1 million into the account of BNC Communications Bureau Limited. The court also found no evidence to support the charge of obtaining public property by false statements, explaining that the prosecution had not established that Adu-Boahene made any false representation to obtain permission from another person before transferring the funds. The two decisions mean that Adu-Boahene will no longer be required to open his defence on the fifth and ninth charges. Despite dismissing the two charges, the court ordered Adu-Boahene to open his defence on eight of the 11 charges brought against him. These include three counts of stealing involving GH¢27.1 million, GH¢1 million and GH¢21 million, respectively. The other charges are conspiracy to steal GH¢49.1 million, wilfully causing financial loss to the state, using public office for profit, money laundering and conspiracy to commit money laundering. On the first charge of stealing GH¢27.1 million, the court held that the prosecution had presented sufficient evidence to establish that the money belonged to the Government of Ghana and that Adu-Boahene had appropriated it, thereby denying the state the benefit of the funds. It adopted similar findings on the second charge involving GH¢1 million and also found sufficient evidence on the third charge involving GH¢21 million. The court stressed that the prosecution was only required at this stage to establish a prima facie case to warrant Adu-Boahene being called upon to open his defence, rather than prove his guilt beyond reasonable doubt. On the fourth charge of conspiracy to steal GH¢49.1 million, involving Adu-Boahene and the second accused, Angela Adjei-Boateng, the court held that the evidence suggested an agreement between the two to steal the money. It noted that Adjei-Boateng was the sole shareholder of Advantage Solutions Limited, the third accused in the case. The court consequently ordered both Adu-Boahene and Adjei-Boateng to open their defence on the charge. Adu-Boahene Trial: We will disregard your submissions – Court tells Deputy AG On the sixth charge of wilfully causing financial loss to the state, the court held that the prosecution had established evidence of the movement of GH¢49.1 million belonging to the state into the account of BNC Communications Bureau Limited. It said there was evidence that Adu-Boahene caused the funds to be transferred into the company's account, thereby denying the state the opportunity to use the money. The court, however, identified a triable issue concerning whether a cyber-security device allegedly supplied by an Israeli company had actually been delivered to BNC. It noted that although a letter from the Israeli company indicated that the device had been supplied, the inventory of the NSB tendered by the prosecution did not include the item. Nevertheless, the court found sufficient evidence to require Adu-Boahene to respond to the charge. On the seventh charge of using public office for profit, the court said the prosecution had presented evidence that Adu-Boahene withdrew GH¢600,000 and deposited GH¢53,000 into the account of Advantage Solutions Limited, from which GH¢50,000 was withdrawn on the same day. It further observed that funds had been moved from the BNC account into an account belonging to a company in which Adjei-Boateng was both a director and shareholder. The court described Adjei-Boateng, who is the wife of Adu-Boahene, as his associate and held that the evidence established a prima facie case requiring him to open his defence. Second accused and company also ordered to open defence The court also ordered Adjei-Boateng to open her defence on four charges, while Advantage Solutions Limited was directed to respond to two charges. Adjei-Boateng is to open her defence on counts four, eight, 10 and 11, covering conspiracy to steal, collaboration to commit a crime, money laundering and conspiracy to commit money laundering. On the eighth charge of collaboration to commit a crime, the court found evidence of her alleged collaboration with Adu-Boahene, warranting her to respond to the allegation. Advantage Solutions Limited, the third accused, is to open its defence on the 10th and 11th charges of money laundering and conspiracy to commit money laundering. The court held that the prosecution had established a prima facie case of the underlying offence of stealing and presented sufficient evidence suggesting that all three accused persons had allowed themselves to be used to commit money laundering. It also adopted its findings on the fourth charge of conspiracy to steal in determining that the three accused persons had to respond to the conspiracy to commit money laundering charge. Following the ruling, the court explained to the accused persons their rights to testify under oath or make unsworn statements in their defence. They have until December 4, 2026, to file their witness statements, should they wish to do so. BAI Dr Cassiel Ato Forson presents the 2027 Budget Statement and Economic Policy Source: www.ghanaweb.com
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