The criminal trial involving former Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta and seven other accused persons has been adjourned to February 26 to allow the prosecution additional time to complete outstanding procedural requirements.

The adjournment follows a request by the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) for more time to conclude international processes aimed at serving summons on Mr Ofori-Atta and another accused person, Ernest Darko Akore, both of whom have been declared fugitives from justice.

According to JoyNews’ Legal Affairs Correspondent, Kwaku Asante, the hearing scheduled for Wednesday was expected to be a case management conference, a procedural session during which the court would have issued guidelines and directives on how the trial was to proceed.

However, the conference could not take place because the prosecution had not completed two critical pre-trial requirements.

First, summons are yet to be served on Mr Ofori-Atta and Mr Akore, who are currently outside the country. As a result, service must be effected through the Attorney-General’s Department, a process the OSP said is still ongoing.

Second, the prosecution must file and serve all disclosure documents before the case management conference. While some disclosures have been filed, the OSP told the court that not all had been served on the defence.

At Wednesday’s hearing, the prosecution therefore pleaded for additional time to complete the service of summons and outstanding disclosures to ensure that the case management conference can proceed when the court resumes next month.

The court granted the request and adjourned proceedings to February 26, with the expectation that all procedural issues would be resolved by then.

The trial stems from charges filed by the OSP in November 2025, accusing Mr Ofori-Atta and his co-accused of corruption and corruption-related offences, largely linked to contracts awarded to Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Limited (SML) and related public procurement transactions.

The eight accused persons are Ken Ofori-Atta, Ernest Darko Akore, Emmanuel Kofi Nti, Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah, Isaac Crentsil, Kwadwo Damoah, Evans Adusei, and Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Limited.

According to the prosecution, the accused allegedly caused significant financial loss to the state through unlawful payments, procurement breaches, and other infractions connected to government contracts executed between 2018 and 2024.