Judgement in Selormey's case on December 10
A squandering friend remanded in custody
Accra (Greater Accra) 05 December 2001 - The Fast Track Court would on Monday, December 10, give judgement in a case in which Victor Selormey, former Deputy Finance Minister is being tried on various counts of financial malpractice.
The court, presided over by Mr Justice Sam Baddoo said fixed the date when the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Mr Osafo Sampong concluded his address by urging the court to convict Selormey.
Selormey is charged with six counts of conspiracy, defrauding by false pretences and wilfully causing financial loss to the state. He has pleaded not guilty and is on a 1.5 billion cedis bail with two sureties to be justified.
Mr Sampong urged the court to hold as a fact that the prosecution had proved all the "ingredients of the charges to the hilt" against the accused. The DPP said the defence put up by Selormey was not "reasonably probable" and must be ignored.
Mr Sampong said it was on record that Selormey wrote two letters, dated November 27, 1998 and February 12, 1999, authorising ECOBANK to transfer a total of 1.297 million dollars to Leebda Corporation in Texas, United States (US), for payment of consultancy services.
He said the prosecution led evidence to show that the Court Computerisation Project, in respect of which the accused claimed he made the payment was non-existent.
The DPP said it was also in evidence that the Legal Sector Co-ordinating Committee was charged with the computerisation of the Judicial Service and contracted VMS for the project.
He said a defence witness, Mr Kwame Peprah, even testified that the project was a World Bank loan and that he did not know that a contract was signed between the government and Leebda.
Mr Sampong said there was enough evidence to show that Selormey conspired with Dr Frederick Owusu Boadu, President of Leebda and signed a contract of consultancy services for which no job was done
He urged the court to ignore the defence of the accused that Dr Boadu produced a CD-ROM as a result of the contract. The DPP said the issue of CD-ROM was "irrelevant" to the matter as far as the prosecution was concerned, because the government did not sign any contract with the Leebda.
GRi.../
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Accra (Greater Accra) 05 December 2001 - An Accra Circuit Tribunal chaired by Mr Mohammed Nabon on Tuesday remanded a caretaker, Michael Parry in custody for stealing.
Parry pleaded not guilty and is to re-appear on December 12. The prosecutor told the court that Mr Kweku Oware Sakordie, a resident of London and was a friend to Parry, who lived in Ghana and took care of his (Sakordie's) projects.
In December last year Mr Sakordie sent 10,000 pounds sterling to Parry and asked him to collect another 40 million cedis from a friend for the projects. However, the accused embezzled the monies and went into hiding until August 2001, when he was seen at Abossey Okai by the complainant's sister in-law and was arrested.
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