'Comical joke': Atta Akyea disputes 'personal account' claim in former NSB boss Adu-Boahene case

Kwabena Adu-Boahene's lawyer, Samuel Atta Akyea, rejected allegations on Thursday, April 2, 2026, at Criminal Court 3 of the Accra High Court, that his client diverted state funds into a personal bank account, describing the claim as misleading and inconsistent with evidence presented in court. Atta Akyea maintained that the bank account at the centre of the controversy is not privately owned, but rather an official National Security Special Operations account. He said, "We don't want to sort of prejudge some of the issues, but nobody can run away from the fact that the UMB account was a National Security Special Operations account."

These remarks respond to accusations by the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Dr Dominic Ayine, who alleged that Adu-Boahene transferred substantial sums, reportedly up to $7 million, into a personal account with UMB. Atta Akyea insists the prosecution's own witness testimony contradicts that claim. He further argued that documentary evidence tendered in court, including deposit slips, clearly identifies the account as an institutional one. The case stems from a controversial $7 million contract signed on January 30, 2020, between the NSB and RLC Holdings Limited, an Israeli firm, for the procurement of cyber defence system software.

According to the Attorney-General, only $1.75 million of the contract sum was paid to the vendor, while the remaining funds-equivalent to approximately GH¢39.5 million-were allegedly diverted to a private entity, BNC Communications Bureau Limited, reportedly linked to Adu-Boahene and his spouse. The prosecution further claims that on February 6, 2020, a separate transfer of GH¢271 million was made from an NSB account at Fidelity Bank into