AG files 42 new charges against Kofi Amoabeng and five others

The Attorney General has filed 42 new charges against the founder of now-defunct UT Bank Prince Kofi Amoabeng and five other persons.

This comes after the state earlier today [Wednesday, February 5, 2020] discontinued the case against Kofi Amoabeng at the circuit court.

The five others being hauled before court are; Johnson Pandit Asiama, Raymond Amanfu, UT Holdings Ltd., Catherine Johnson and Robert Kwesi Armah.

READ ALSO: Court drops all charges against former UT Bank boss Kofi Amoabeng

Johnson Pandit Asiama (1st accused), was the 2nd Deputy Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BOG) between May 2016 and December 2017.

Raymond Amanfu (2nd accused), was the Head of Banking Supervision Department (BSD) at BOG from 2014 to October 2017.

UT Holdings Limited (3rd accused), is a holding company which held shares in UT Bank Ghana Limited (UT).

Prince Kofi Amoabeng (4th accused), was the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of UT from its inception in 2009 until his retirement on 31st December 2015. He is a shareholder and Director of UT Holdings.

Catherine Johnson (5th accused), was the Head of Treasury who had also acted as the Head of Corporate Banking of UT.

Robert Kwesi Armah (6th accused), was the General Manager of Corporate Banking of UT.

The new charges slapped against the persons involved include fraudulent breach of trust, fabrication of evidence and deceit of public officer.

The prosecution in stating the facts said the following:

By an Agreement dated 1st November, 2013, UT granted a credit facility of $15million to Lushann International Energy Ghana Ltd (Lushann) for the purchase of crude oil to be supplied to Petraco Oil Company (Petraco) by Lushann. As security for the facility, Lushann assigned the stock to UT.

In furtherance of the supply of the crude oil to Petraco, Lushann chartered a vessel called Olympic Faith owned by Melville Enterprises SA (Melville), a Liberian company which was contracted by Lushann to receive the crude oil for onward delivery to Petraco.

On 14th January 2014, Melville issued a Writ of Summons out of the Registry of the High Court, Accra, against Lushann claiming the sum of $6,775,269.90 as unpaid fees for the charter of Olympic Faith. UT applied to join the suit as an interested party to contest Melville’s claim to the cargo under a Stock Assignment
Agreement.

By an order dated 27th January 2014, the High Court directed that the cargo be sold and $7million out of the proceeds deposited in an escrow account with UT in the name of the Registrar of the High Court at an interest rate of 2% per annum pending the final determination of the matter.

A letter dated 21st February 2014 addressed to the Registrar of the High Court and under the hands of the 4th accused person and Gwendy Miranda Bannerman, the Head of the Legal Department of UT, confirmed the opening of the account and the payment of the sum of $7 million into the account as ordered by the Court. Subsequently, UT submitted to the Registrar a statement of account and purported details of a call investment signed by the 5th and 6th accused persons and one Stephen Azumah which turned out to be false.

Investigations revealed that even though the 4th, 5th and 6th accused persons knew there was no money in the account they deliberately persisted in submitting false statements to the Registrar.

On 14th August 2017, the Bank of Ghana (BOG) revoked the operating licence of UT for violating banking laws and subsequently went into receivership.

Investigations conducted in the course of the receivership of UT revealed that
investments totalling GH₵51,334,387.08 and $8,799,917 placed with UT by some 15 companies, had been transferred to UT Holdings, by UT without the knowledge and or consent of the companies. It was established that UT Holdings did not have a licence to take deposits and investments.

By a letter dated 28th April, 2016, UT requested additional liquidity support in the sum of GH₵650 million from BoG. Upon the recommendation of the 2nd accused person, the 1st accused person approved an unsecured liquidity support facility of GH₵460 million without following prescribed mandatory statutory conditions. No payment was made for the facility.

By the same letter, UT also requested a waiver of single obligor limits for Letters of Credit in respect of MBG Limited in the sum of GH₵45.8 million, Kofi Jobs Limited in the sum of GH₵46.9 million and Holman Brothers Limited in the sum of GH₵48.5 million. Again, upon the recommendation of the 2nd accused person, the 1st accused person, without following prescribed mandatory statutory conditions, gave approval for single obligor waiver in respect of Letters of Credit previously granted by UT to its customers as follows:

• MBG Limited in the sum of GH₵45.7 million
• Kofi Jobs Limited in the sum of GH₵46.91 million
• Holman Brothers Limited GH₵48.48 million

Out of the BoG liquidity support of GH₵460 million, GH₵413.09 million remains due to BoG.

Based on these facts, the accused persons have been arraigned before this court
for trial.