Bernard Antwi Boasiako, widely known as Chairman Wontumi, has been rearraigned before an Accra High Court on a fresh charge sheet in the ongoing Ghana Export-Import Bank (Exim Bank) fraud case.
The first accused person, currently serving a 20-year prison sentence at the Nsawam Maximum Security Prison following a conviction by a differently constituted High Court, was brought to court to answer five counts brought against him and two others.
The fresh charge sheet, filed on 22 September 2026, stems from allegations surrounding the fraudulent procurement of an Exim Bank loan facility in 2018. The charges comprise defrauding by false pretence, two counts of uttering forged documents, money laundering, and intentionally causing financial loss to a public body to the tune of GH₵30,000,000.
Presenting the state’s case, the prosecution told the court that Chairman Wontumi submitted documents to Exim Bank in January 2018 to secure funding for a proposed agricultural project. Subsequent investigations revealed that these documents were forged and altered.
Investigators further alleged that the accused persons did not undertake any agricultural activity, purchased no plant or machinery, and employed no staff for the project.
The prosecution added that the accused persons neither owned nor secured the parcel of land presented to the bank as the farm site.
According to state investigators, Chairman Wontumi withdrew significant sums of the disbursed funds from the bank account of the third accused entity, Wontumi Farms Limited, and diverted the money into personal enterprise ventures.
Chairman Wontumi pleaded not guilty to all five charges.
The court directed the prosecution to file all relevant disclosures within 14 days and scheduled the Case Management Conference for Tuesday, 27 October 2026, at 11:00 am.
Following the proceedings, prison officers escorted Chairman Wontumi back to the Nsawam Maximum Security Prison, where he remains incarcerated.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana