Bernard Antwi Boasiako, also known as Chairman Wontumi, the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), has entered a not guilty plea to four criminal counts related to an alleged fraudulent GH¢14.3 million transaction involving the Ghana Export-Import Bank (EXIM Bank).
Chairman Wontumi and Wontumi Farms Limited, which Wontumi represented, appeared before the High Court in Accra. Thomas Antwi-Boasiako, the second accused, is still at large.
Charges of money laundering, creating a forged document, defrauding by false pretence, and purposefully causing financial loss to a public body were all refuted by the accused.
Prosecutors claim that Bernard and Thomas Antwi-Boasiako acquired GH¢14,302,000 from EXIM Bank in 2018 under false pretences, according to the charge sheet submitted by the Attorney-General’s Department.
Additionally, the prosecution claims that Chairman Wontumi obtained an extra GH¢4 million from the bank by using a counterfeit receipt, knowing it was not authentic.
According to court records, EXIM Bank executives were shown the purportedly faked receipt as evidence of payment to support the transaction.
Prosecutors claim that between 2018 and 2022, Chairman Wontumi took possession of a portion of the GH¢14.302 million that Wontumi Farms Limited had received, knowing that the money had been obtained fraudulently.
Additionally, Chairman Wontumi, Thomas Antwi-Boasiako, and Wontumi Farms Limited are accused by the prosecution of purposefully causing EXIM Bank to lose more than GH¢30 million during the business transaction.
Andy Appiah-Kubi, the accused’s attorney, asked the court to uphold the bail terms previously set by the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) during the proceedings, claiming that the accused had continuously cooperated with investigators and accepted all invitations.
He informed the court that Chairman Wontumi is a politician, businessman, and public person who has a fixed residence and has cooperated completely with the terms of his bail.
The prosecution did not oppose the bail application and confirmed that the first accused person had complied with previous bail terms and consistently appeared whenever required.
The prosecution was instructed to submit disclosures prior to the Case Management Conference, and the accused were subsequently granted bail on the current conditions.
The case has been rescheduled for CMC on June 18, 2026.
Source: newsthemegh.com