The commercial Division of the Accra High Court presided over by Justice Eric Kyei Baffour has admitted William Ato Essien, Tetteh Nettey and Fitzgerald Odonkor in the sum of GHc200 million.
Businesswoman, Kate Quartet Papafio was also granted bail in the sum of GHc75 million.
They are all to provide four sureties each with persons of good character and substance.
The court also ordered them to submit their passport to the registrar of the High Court and notify it anytime they intend to travel.
Representations
The State was represented by the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Gloria Afua Akuffo, the Director of Public Prosecution, Yvonne Atakora Obuabisa, Chief State Attorneys Evelyn Kelsson, and Marina Appiah Opare.
Baffour Bonsu Ashia appeared for the first and Second accused persons holding the brief of Thaddeus Sory. Lawyer Justin Amenuvor and three others represented the the third accused person, Fitzgerald Odonkor. Lawyer Dominic Aryine with K. T. Hammond, and Godwin Tamakloe for the fourth Accused person, Kate Quartey-Papafio.
The Facts
The facts as read in court indicated that “William Ato Essien, was the majority shareholder of Capital Bank Limited” . The 2nd accused person, “Tetteh Nettey, was the Managing Director of MC Management Services, a company established by the 1st accused person purposely for the Promotion of the incorporation of Sovereign Bank, another brain child of the 1st accused person” . The 3rd accused person “Fitzgerald Odonkor the facts stated, was the Managing Director of Capital Bank from June 2015 to August 2017” and the 4th accused person, “Kate Quartey-Papafio is a business woman and. Chief Executive Officer of Reroy Cables Company Limited” .
It further stated that “between June 2015 and November 2016, pursuant to an application by Capinal Bank, the Bank of Ghana (BOG) provided a total sum of GHS 620 million as liquidity support to Capital Bank to enable it meet its capital adequacy ratio and to enable it service its maturing debt obligations”.
“In October 2015, the 1st accused person, aided by the 3rd accused person, caused a transfer of a sum of GHS120 million of the liquidity support amount to All Time Capital Limited (All Time), an investment management and advisory firm. At the instance of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd accused persons, GHS100 million of the GHc 120 million which had been transferred to All Time, was further transferred to MC Management Services while GHc 20 million of the amount of GHc 120 million was transferred to Pronto Construction and Supplies Limited (Pronto Construction).
The sum of GHS100 million which was transferred to MC Management Services was subsequently represented by the 2nd accused person to BOG as initial Capital of Sovereign Bank while the GHS 20million that was transferred to Pronto Construction was used by the Managing Director of Pronto Construction, ostensibly to purchase shares in Capital Bank.
Again, at the instance of the 1st and 3rd accused persons, GHS65million out of the BOG liquidity support of GHS620 million was transferred to Nordea Capital Limited described as an investment bank. Of the amount of GHS65 million, the 1 st accused person, aided by the 3rd accused person, caused GHS30million to be
transferred to MC Management Services which was represented to BOG as additional initial capital of Sovereign Bank by the 2nd accused person. With the aid of the 3rd accused person, the remaining GHc 35million of the GHS65 million was paid into a Fidelity Bank account of Brietling Services, a Company also established by the 1st accused person. At the request of the 1st
accused person, the amount of GHS35 million which was transferred into the account of Brietling Services was subsequently transterred to Capital Africa
Group, a company owned by the 1st accused person.
The total amount of GHS130 million which was represented as initial capital of Sovereign Bank was eventually channelled by the 1st and 2nd accused persons into Capital Africa Group, the 1st accused person’s company, less bank charges. The monies transferred into Capital Africa Group was eventually dissipated by the 1st and 2nd accused persos.
Between June 2015 and October 2016, the 1 st accused person, with the support of the 3rd accused person, appropriated a total of GHS27.5million of the liquidity
support which was Conveyed in jute bags to the 1st accused person and
purportedly used as payment for business promotion.
In June 2017, in furtherance of the conversion of portions of the GHS620 million liquidity support, the 1st accused person caused a sum of GHS100 million to be
paid into a Capital Bank account held by the Managing Director of the following three (3) companies; Maripoma Enterprise Limited, Hardwick Limited and Volta
Impex Enterprise Limited opened purposely to receive the amount. The GHS100 million was to be used by the Managing Director of the three companies ostensibly as payment for 30% shares in Capital Bank. As a cover up of the
conversion, the 1st accused person prevailed on the Mamaging Director of the companies to submit copies of Government Payment Certificates of the three (3) companies valued at GHS135million to be discounted to GHS105 million by Capital Bank, to be used as collateral for the purported loan of GHS100 million.
The 1st accused person then caused GHS70 million out of the GHS100 million that had been previously paid into the Managing Director’s account at Capital Bank, to be transferred to the 4th accused person’s account with Calbank
Limited.
The 1st and 4th accused persons subsequently caused the amount of GHS70 million in the Calbank account of the 4th accused person to be further transferred into a personal account of the 4th accused person purposely opened at Capital
Bank to receive the amount.
Sometime in 2017 after Capital Bank had gone into receivership, the 4th accused person even though fully aware that Capital bank had gone into liquidation, attempted to withdraw the whole amount of GHS70 million which had been lodged in her personal account with Capital Bank but was however prevented from doing so by the receivers.
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM/Wilberforce Asare/Mutala Inusah
