During the trial of Dr. Stephen Opuni, former CEO of COCOBOD, and businessman Seidu Agongo, Mr. Paul Adjei Gyang, a Senior Official from the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO), revealed that he found no certificates issued for the Lithovit fertilizer tests during his investigations.
Testifying before an Accra High Court, Mr. Gyang stated that despite his investigations, he did not come across any certificates related to the Lithovit fertilizer. However, he mentioned being presented with a copy of the certificates while in court.
The trial revolves around 27 charges against Dr. Opuni and Mr. Agongo, including defrauding by false pretences, causing financial loss to the State, money laundering, and corruption, among others. Both defendants have pleaded not guilty and are currently out on self-recognizance bail.
Mr. Gyang, who was called as a witness for Mr. Agongo, confirmed that EOCO was unable to investigate certain issues raised by the Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana (CRIG) staff as they were removed from the investigation process.
He emphasized that the investigation focused on general procurement processes and that EOCO did not have the opportunity to analyze specific issues related to Lithovit during the process.
According to Mr. Gyang, although procurement documents were reviewed, some records remained outstanding. The investigative team was later directed to hand over the case to the Ghana Police, which prevented them from further analyzing the documents.
The case was adjourned to March 12, 2024, with Dr. Francis Baah, a former CRIG employee, scheduled to testify on the next hearing date.