AG to Prosecute LPG Leader Kofi Akpaloo, Wife for Diverting GH¢3.1m COCOBOD Funds
- Ghana’s Attorney General has said that Kofi Akpaloo and his wife will be charged in January for allegedly diverting GH¢3.1m from a COCOBOD contract
- Investigations showed that Akpaloo created a fake company with a similar name to the original contractor and deposited cheques into it
- The AG added that Akua Pomaa, the rightful contractor, was unaware of the fraud until COCOBOD raised concerns
The Attorney General and Minister for Justice, Dr Dominic Ayine, has announced that his office will soon file charges against the founder and leader of the Liberal Party of Ghana, Percival Kofi Akpaloo, along with two others, including his wife, over alleged financial crimes involving a COCOBOD contract.
According to the Attorney General, the Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC) flagged and filed a suspicious transaction report with First Bank Ghana regarding transactions on an account belonging to Pomaa Universal Ghana Limited, a company linked to Mr Akpaloo.
Source: UGC
Following this, Dr Ayine disclosed that the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) began an investigation into the matter.
The investigations showed that Pomaa Universal (Gh.) Ltd, a business entity owned entirely by a woman identified as Akua Pomaa, was the legitimate contractor awarded a COCOBOD feeder road contract in December 2020, valued at GH¢29.5 million.
The Attorney General further disclosed that although the project commenced and an initial payment was properly deposited into Pomaa Universal Limited’s account, subsequent payments raised serious concerns regarding misrepresentation, forgery, and unauthorised handling of cheques.
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AG shares Akpaloo’s mode of operation
According to Dr Ayine, Akpaloo secretly incorporated a separate company, Pomaah Universal (Gh.) Ltd, deliberately designed to closely resemble Pomaa Universal (Gh.) Ltd, differing only by the addition of an “h”.
Between December 2022 and June 2024, Dr Ayine stated that Akpaloo collected eight cheques issued by COCOBOD in the name of Pomaa Universal (Gh.) Ltd.
The eight cheques, amounting to GH¢3,169,432.22, were deposited into the account of his own company at First Bank Ghana, according to the Attorney General.
Additionally, he noted that investigations confirmed that Akua Pomaa was unaware of both the existence of Pomaah Universal (Gh.) Ltd and the diversion of funds until COCOBOD contacted her in June 2024 regarding outstanding balances on the contract.
The Attorney General and Minister for Justice further stated that Akpaloo had collected and misdirected the payments without her consent.
Akua Pomaa also alleged that Akpaloo forged her signature on the COCOBOD contract using her former name, Mercy Owusu, to secure the agreement without her authorisation, the Attorney General said.
Dr Ayine said that First Bank Ghana’s internal investigations corroborated the fraud allegations, concluding that Akpaloo knowingly misrepresented ownership of the cheques and deposited them into the wrong account.
He added that the bank acknowledged operational failures in detecting discrepancies between the cheque payee names and the account numbers.
"The suspects who have been investigated are Percival Kofi Akpaloo, Pomaah Universal (Gh.) Ltd, and Delvine Akpaloo, the spouse of Percival Kofi Akpaloo," Dr Ayine said.
"The evidence shows that they engaged in various criminal offences including stealing, forgery and money laundering and will be charged in January," he added.
Source: Facebook
Wontumi allegedly defrauded Exim Bank of GH₵24m
In a related development, YEN.com.gh reported that Chairman Wontumi had been cited in a corruption case involving a GH₵24 million loan obtained through alleged false documentation.
The Attorney General also disclosed that Wontumi Farms Limited applied for the loan before it was officially registered in December 2017.
He added that investigations by EOCO found no evidence of farming activity, prompting plans to prosecute for fraud, forgery, and causing financial loss to the state.
Source: YEN.com.gh
