Woyome is not a criminal: Appeal Court dismisses case

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The Court of Appeal has upheld‎ the decision by the High Court to exonerate businessman Alfred Agbesi Woyome of any criminality in the award of the â‚µ51.2 million judgment debt. ‎

The Court‎ presided over by Justice Victor Ofoe accepted the defense of Woyome saying the Attorney-General failed to prove his guilt beyond reasonable doubt.‎

The NDC financier Woyome was on Thursday, March 12, 2015, acquitted and discharged by the Accra High Court on two counts of defrauding by false pretence and causing financial loss to the state.

Marrietta Brew Oppong who was prosecuting the criminal case against Woyome case at the High court had called eight witnesses, including former Deputy Minister of Finance, Kwaku Agyemang Manu and staff of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning as well as the former Minister of Education, Youth and Sports, Yaw Osafo-Maafo.

Alfred Agbesi Woyome

Woyome called none to testify in his defence. He relied heavily on correspondence from Betty Mould Iddrisu to the Finance Minister Kwabena Duffuor to make his case.

In his judgment, the presiding judge, Justice John Ajet-Nasam, took on the Attorney General’s Department for paying â‚µ51.2 million to Woyome in 2010 only to turn around to prosecute him for fraud.

But the Attorney-General vowed to push the case further at the Appeal Court.

Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mrs Marietta Brew Appiah-Oppong

“We disagree completely with the judgement of the court...we are applying for a copy of the judgement, study it carefully and appeal accordingly,” the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mrs Marietta Brew Appiah-Oppong said.

About a year ago, the State asked the court to reverse the decision on six grounds.

According to the state, the judgement acquitting and discharging Woyome for the offences of defrauding by false pretences and causing financial loss to the state should be set aside.

But after six years since Woyome was first arraigned, the businessman walks free of any criminal charges in one of the longest running scandal under the NDC government.

A civil case to get him to refund the money was however succesful. A former Attorney-General Martin Amidu acting in his private capacity secured a Supreme Court order directing the businessman to cough up â‚µ51.2 million.