An investigator in the ongoing cyber software theft case involving former Director-General of the National Signals Bureau (NSB), Kwabena Adu-Boahene, has told the Accra High Court that the cyber defence system for which GH¢49.1 million was paid was never delivered to the state agency.
The lead investigator, Frank Marshall Cromwell, an officer of the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), made the disclosure while giving evidence under examination by the Deputy Attorney General.
According to Mr Cromwell, investigations revealed that on January 30, 2020, Mr Adu-Boahene, in his capacity as Director of the NSB, signed an international agreement with Israeli company ISC Holdings Limited for the acquisition of a cyber defence system on behalf of the Government of Ghana.
He told the court that following the agreement, GH¢49.1 million was transferred from the NSB’s account to an account belonging to BNC Communications Limited–Operations, purportedly to facilitate payment for the cyber defence project.
However, investigations established that the account was owned and controlled by Mr Adu-Boahene and his wife, rather than being an official government account.
Mr Cromwell testified that only GH¢9,537,500, equivalent to approximately US$1.75 million, was subsequently transferred from the account to ISC Holdings Limited.
He stated that no additional payments were made to the Israeli firm after the initial transfer.
“The bank records show that from the time the GH¢49.1 million was lodged into the BNC Communications Bureau-Operations bank account, A1 on February 6, 2020, made a bank transfer of the sum of GH¢9,537,500, equivalent to US$1,750,000 to ISC Holdings. No further payments were made to ISC Holdings from this account,” he told the court.
The investigator further alleged that the remaining funds were withdrawn and spent on personal activities.
“A1 then went on a spending spree, making substantial cash withdrawals from the account for personal purposes. This continued until the account was depleted, after which he instructed the bank to close the account and transfer any remaining funds to A4, a company of his,” he stated.
Mr Cromwell also told the court that despite the expenditure of the GH¢49.1 million, the cyber defence system was never supplied to the National Signals Bureau.
“Our investigation established that ISC Holdings Limited did not deliver the cyber defence system to the NSB, and that NSB does not have the cyber defence system in its inventory,” he said.
Mr Adu-Boahene, together with his wife, Angela Boateng, and Advantage Solutions Limited (ASL), is standing trial over allegations of misappropriating approximately GH¢49 million intended for the procurement of government cybersecurity software.
Prosecutors allege that the funds were routed through a network of companies before ultimately being transferred to Advantage Solutions Limited and subsequently used to acquire properties in Accra, Kumasi and London.
The case forms part of a broader investigation into the alleged diversion of public funds earmarked for national cybersecurity infrastructure, with proceedings continuing before the Accra High Court.
