Cecilia Abena Dapaah, who recently resigned from her position as the Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources, has been placed under arrest by the Office of Special Prosecutor (OSP) for suspected corruption and corruption-related offences.
The arrest is in connection with alleged large sums of money and personal properties stolen from her home in Abelempke, Accra, for which five people are currently standing trial.
The OSP issued a statement on Monday, July 24, 2023, confirming the arrest and stating that Ms Dapaah is being questioned by authorized officers of the OSP.
“At 11:55 GMT on 24 July 2023, Cecilia Abena Dapaah, who resigned from the position of Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources on 22 July 2023, was placed under arrest by the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) in respect of suspected corruption and corruption-related offences regarding large amounts of money and other valuable items reportedly stolen from her residence.
“Ms Dapaah is being questioned by authorised Officers of the OSP,” the statement read.
The arrest comes in the wake of media reports surrounding an ongoing criminal trial of the five suspects accused of stealing millions of dollars, euros, and Ghanaian cedis, which were allegedly the monies and personal effects of Cecilia Abena Dapaah and her husband.
The theft is said to have occurred between July and October 2022.
The charges against the two house helps, 18-year-old Patience Botwe, and 30-year-old Sarah Agyei, along with three others have raised public interest and led to a wave of calls for the investigation and arrest of Cecilia Abena Dapaah to ascertain the source of the large sums of money involved.
The duo are alleged to have stolen an astounding sum of $1 million, €300,000, and millions of Ghanaian cedis from Ms Dapaah’s residence in Abelenkpe, Accra.
The arrest of Cecilia Abena Dapaah came after the Office of the Special Prosecutor received numerous reports urging an immediate investigation into the significant sum of money stolen from the premises of the former Minister. Reliable sources have revealed that over 200 reports were submitted, expressing concerns over the source of the stolen funds, which were allegedly taken by her two house helps.
However, the former minister has contested the amounts stated on the prosecution charge sheets, claiming that they are inconsistent with what she reported to the police.
The arrest of Cecilia Abena Dapaah marks a significant development in the ongoing investigation into the alleged stolen monies. As the situation unfolds, the Office of Special Prosecutor is expected to conduct a thorough investigation to establish the facts and determine the extent of her involvement, if any, in the reported theft. The case has garnered attention, and the public is closely monitoring the proceedings to ensure transparency and accountability in matters of corruption.
