The husband of former Sanitation Minister Cecilia Dapaah, Daniel Osei Kuffour, has been apprehended in connection with ongoing inquiries into suspected corruption and related offenses.
This development emerged during a court proceeding in which the special prosecutor’s office sought approval to freeze Cecilia Dapaah’s bank accounts and confiscate approximately US$590,000 and GHC 2,730,000 discovered at her residence in Abelemkpe.
The presiding judge raised a question about why only Cecilia Dapaah was being investigated, given that the allegedly ill-gotten money was found at her marital home. Dr. Isidore Tufour, the Director of Prosecutions at the Office of the Special Prosecutor, responded by confirming that Cecilia Dapaah’s husband had also been taken into custody.
However, Cecilia Dapaah’s legal representative stated that this news came as a surprise to them, as their client was unaware of her husband’s purported arrest.
Meanwhile, Cecilia Dapaah criticized the special prosecutor’s application to validate an order freezing her assets and seizing her properties. She characterized it as an effort to perpetuate arbitrary use of authority based on distorted facts and the resulting media frenzy. Her legal team voiced this opposition during a Thursday session.
During the proceedings, lawyers for both the anti-corruption agency and the former sanitation minister debated before Justice Edward Twum regarding the confirmation of the property seizure and freezing orders.
Dr. Isidore Tufour argued that the application aligned with the provisions of the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act (959), designed to prevent the concealment of assets suspected of being tainted by corruption.
The confirmation request from the special prosecutor’s office was focused on seizing the sum of US$590,000 and GHC 2,730,000 discovered during a search of three residences associated with Cecilia Dapaah.
Dr. Tufour revealed in court that Cecilia Dapaah was unable to account for the source of the funds and that the ownership of the allegedly misappropriated money was a subject of dispute.
The attorney contended that these circumstances warranted the application for confirmation of the seizure order, as the office suspected the funds were tied to corrupt activities.
In contrast, Cecilia Dapaah’s legal team, led by Victoria Barth, argued that the confirmation application violated the prescribed procedure outlined in the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act.