The Financial Division of the Fast Track High Court in Accra could not hear the case involving the businessman, Mr Alfred Agbesi Woyome, on Wednesday as a result of the inability of the presiding judge to sit.

Consequently, the case has been adjourned to December 5,2013.

The reason for the inability of the Judge, Mr Justice John Ajet-Nasam, to hear the case was not given.

At the last sitting on November 27, 2013, lead counsel for Mr Woyome, Mr Osarfo Buabeng, had told the court he had received a letter from the prosecutor, Mr Matthew Amponsah, a Chief State Attorney, that he was ill and could not be at the hearing and, therefore, asked Mr Woyome’s lawyers to seek a new date from the judge.

Mr Woyome is on trial for defrauding by false pretences and causing financial loss to the state but has, since June 5,2012, denied the charges.

The accused, who has denied any wrongdoing, is alleged to have made fraudulent claims to the government, resulting in the payment of GHC51.2 million to him.

Facts of the case

State prosecutors say Mr Woyome, in February 2010, made a false representation that the government owed him two per cent of €1,106,470,587 for his services of financial engineering for the rehabilitation of the Kumasi, Accra and El-Wak stadia, ahead of the CAN 2008 African Cup of Nations.

At the hearing on November 6, the ninth prosecution witness told the court that responses from the Bank of Austria to two institutions in Ghana indicated that there was no agreement to provide funding for any project in Ghana.

Two institutions — the Police Administration and the Attorney-General’s Department — had written to the bank for responses on whether Mr Woyome had any agreement with the bank to provide funding for projects in the country.

The witness, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Edward Odame Okyere, an investigator with the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service, said the bank also responded that there was no binding offer from it to fund projects in Ghana