A leading law firm has accused state investigators of intimidation, harassment and abuse of process following the arrest and detention of two of its lawyers in connection with the ongoing PDS-ECG matter.
In a statement issued on May 8, Minkah-Premo, Osei-Bonsu, Bruce-Cathline and Partners said recent media reports had falsely portrayed the firm and its lawyers as having engaged in criminal conduct.
According to the firm, the controversy followed a social media post by the President’s Spokesman, Felix Ofosu Kwakye, which stated that a PDS “quartet” had been arrested and granted bail over money “believed” to belong to ECG.
The firm said the post referred to “Justice Menka-Premoh” and “Sophia Korkor,” which it described as incorrect spellings of the names of lawyers practising with the firm.
It further cited a subsequent interview in which a spokesperson for the Attorney-General’s office allegedly claimed that four individuals, including the firm’s lawyers, had been arrested over the transfer of GH¢850 million from an ECG account.
“The social media post and interview have unfortunately formed the basis of several media stories that inaccurately portray our firm and its lawyers as having engaged in illicit activities,” the statement said.
“These representations are misleading and damaging to the professional reputation of our firm and the individual lawyers who were arrested and detained.”
The firm explained that Senior Partner Justice Kusi-Minkah Premo and Junior Partner Sophia Kokor had visited the offices of the Bureau of National Investigations at Kawukudi on April 30, 2026, to provide legal representation to two clients involved in investigations relating to the PDS-ECG matter.
However, according to the statement, officials from the BNI and the Economic and Organised Crime Office allegedly refused to allow the lawyers to represent their clients and instead declared them “persons of interest.”
“This escalated into the restriction of the movement of Mr Justice Kusi-Minkah Premo and Ms Sophia Kokor,” the statement noted.
The firm said both lawyers were interrogated and subsequently arrested on what it described as vague and unsubstantiated allegations of “Dishonestly Receiving” and “Abetment of Money Laundering.”
It added that the lawyers were detained until the evening of May 1, 2026, before being granted bail in the sum of GH¢50 million each.
“This is not a standard criminal investigation; it is a direct assault on the right to legal counsel and the professional immunity of lawyers,” the statement asserted.
The firm further noted that all four individuals reportedly arrested had participated in arbitration proceedings involving PDS, ECG and the Government of Ghana at the London Court of International Arbitration beginning in 2021. It said the arbitration concluded in November 2025 and that all awarded costs had already been settled.
“PDS owed no money to ECG beyond the costs which were awarded, and which have long since been settled,” the statement said.
The firm also rejected claims that the arrests were linked to the transfer of GH¢850 million from an ECG account.
“The assertion made by the spokesperson of the Attorney-General that the four people (including our lawyers) were arrested and granted bail for their involvement in transferring GH¢850 million out of a Calbank account belonging to ECG as a result of an ‘Interim Protocol’ does not appear on any Investigation Caution Statement and therefore cannot be accurate,” it stated.
Describing the arrests as “a calculated attempt to intimidate and harass our lawyers and the firm,” the law firm warned that such actions threaten the integrity of the justice system.
“When lawyers are arrested for discharging their professional obligations and are then denied the right to represent their clients, the integrity of the entire justice system is compromised,” the statement concluded.