The Accra High Court has postponed the criminal proceedings involving former Finance Minister Ken Ofori Atta and seven other accused persons to September 29, 2026, as the Office of the Special Prosecutor continues efforts to formally serve Mr Ofori Atta and his former Chief of Cabinet, Ernest Darko Akore, with court summons in the United States.
The latest adjournment was granted on Thursday, August 27, following a request from the Office of the Special Prosecutor, which indicated that additional time was required to complete the service of the relevant legal documents on the two accused persons who are currently residing in the United States. The court is understood to expect the prosecution to make further progress on the process before the next hearing.
During the sitting, Special Prosecutor Kissi Agyebeng requested that lawyers representing the various parties approach the bench. The legal teams subsequently met with the trial judge, Justice Francis Apangabuno Achibonga, in chambers before returning to the courtroom, where the judge announced the new date for the continuation of the proceedings.
The development represents another procedural delay in a prosecution that has attracted considerable public attention because of the substantial financial implications alleged by investigators. According to the Office of the Special Prosecutor, Ken Ofori Atta is currently facing 28 counts of corruption and corruption related offences connected to investigations into revenue assurance arrangements between Strategic Mobilization Ghana Limited and the Ghana Revenue Authority.
The other accused persons include former Ghana Revenue Authority Commissioners General Emmanuel Kofi Nti and Ammishaddai Owusu Amoah, former Customs Division Commissioners Isaac Crentsil and Kwadwo Damoah, Ernest Darko Akore, Strategic Mobilization Ghana Limited Chief Executive Evans Adusei, as well as Strategic Mobilization Ghana Limited itself.
The prosecution has alleged that the accused persons were connected to a series of transactions and contractual arrangements involving SML and the Ghana Revenue Authority that allegedly caused financial losses exceeding GH¢1.4 billion to the state. The accused persons who have appeared before the court have denied the allegations and pleaded not guilty.
The case was initially brought before the High Court in November 2025 with 78 charges against the accused persons. The prosecution subsequently streamlined the charges, with the OSP case tracker currently recording 28 counts against Ken Ofori Atta in relation to corruption and corruption related offences.
The proceedings have also been affected by a major constitutional dispute concerning the prosecutorial authority of the Office of the Special Prosecutor. In April 2026, a High Court ruling questioned the OSP’s ability to prosecute criminal matters without the involvement of the Attorney General, resulting in the suspension of several OSP prosecutions while the issue was taken to the Supreme Court.
That uncertainty was substantially resolved on July 29, 2026, when the Supreme Court unanimously upheld the constitutional validity of the Office of the Special Prosecutor Act, 2017, and affirmed the legal basis for the OSP’s prosecutorial mandate. The apex court nevertheless clarified that the Attorney General retains constitutional authority in relation to criminal prosecutions, including the power to discontinue prosecutions initiated by the OSP.
Following the Supreme Court decision, the OSP resumed several of its previously affected prosecutions, including the proceedings involving Ken Ofori Atta and the other accused persons in the SML and GRA matter. The Special Prosecutor subsequently stated that the Supreme Court judgment had settled the major constitutional question surrounding the institution’s prosecutorial mandate.
The latest development comes shortly after the OSP disclosed that it had identified additional suspects and obtained further evidence in some of its ongoing investigations. Although the anti corruption body did not immediately specify which cases were affected by the new discoveries, the disclosure has added further attention to its continuing investigations.
For now, the SML and GRA criminal proceedings remain before the Accra High Court, with the next hearing scheduled for September 29, 2026. The prosecution is expected to use the intervening period to advance the process of serving Ken Ofori Atta and Ernest Darko Akore with the necessary court documents in the United States.
