<p class="mb-5" id="contentDlCitation" hidden>[2013]DLCA3180</p> <div class="restriction-wrapper"> <div class="container-lg"> <div class="row"> <div class="col-md-12 restricted-content"> <div class="restricted-content-img-wrapper"> <div class="lock-icon bounce-7"> <img class="" src="https://www.dennislawgh.com/dl-assets/dl-images/lock-content.png" alt="Subscription based content"> </div> </div> <a href="https://www.dennislawgh.com/login" class="btn btn-primary btn-lg" style="font-family: 'open sans'; text-transform: capitalize; border-radius: 8px"> Login to Read Full Case </a> </div> </div> </div> </div> <main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" ><span style="font-size: 18px !important;"><span style="font-size: 18px !important;"><p class="MsoHeading7" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; color: rgb(0, 176, 240);">ALFRED AGBESI WOYOME<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoHeading7" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; color: rgb(0, 176, 240);">vs.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoHeading7" align="center" style="text-align:center"><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; color: rgb(0, 176, 240);">THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ECONOMIC AND ORGANIZED CRIME OFFICE, OLD PARLIAMENT HOUSE, ACCRA<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> [COURT OF APPEAL, ACCRA]</span><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma"><o:p></o:p></span></b></p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt; padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"> <p class="MsoNormal" style="border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt; padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><span style="font-size:10.0pt; line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">CIVIL APPEAL NO. H1/160</span><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma">/2012 </span><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif""> </span><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">DATE: 14</span><sup><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma">TH</span></sup><span style="font-size:10.0pt; line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif";mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma"> FEBRUARY, 2013<o:p></o:p></span></p> </div><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">COUNSEL: <o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoHeading7"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">MR. OSAFO BUABENG FOR THE RESPONDENT/APPELLANT <o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt; padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"> <p class="MsoHeading7" style="border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt; padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">MR. EDWARD CUDJOE FOR THE APPLICANT/RESPONDENT<o:p></o:p></span></p> </div><p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">CORAM: <o:p></o:p></span></b></p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt; padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"> <p class="MsoHeading7" style="border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt; padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">HENRIETTA ABBAN (MRS.) (PRESIDING), F.G. KORBIEH J.A, SENYO DZAMEFE J.A.<o:p></o:p></span></p> </div><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height:115%"><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif""> <o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt; padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"> <p class="MsoNormalCxSpFirst" align="center" style="text-align:center;border:none; mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">JUDGEMENT</span></b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"; mso-bidi-font-family:Tahoma"><o:p></o:p></span></p> </div><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:5.0pt;mso-pagination:none;border:none; mso-padding-alt:31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt;mso-border-shadow:yes"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif""><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:5.0pt;mso-pagination:none;border:none; mso-padding-alt:31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt;mso-border-shadow:yes"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">F.G. KORBIEH, J.A.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:5.0pt;text-align:justify;text-indent: 2.6pt;mso-pagination:none;border:none;mso-padding-alt:31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt; mso-border-shadow:yes"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%; font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">The brief facts of the case leading to this appeal are as follows. In exercise of the powers conferred on him by section 33 of the Economic and Organized Crime Act, 2010 (Act 804), the Executive Director of the Economic and Organized Crime Office froze bank account no. 116100009158 belonging to Alfred Agbesi Woyome (the respondent/appellant herein) at the Head Office branch of the Agricultural Development Bank. He wrote a letter dated 22/12/2011 to the Head of the Banking Supervision Division of the Bank of Ghana informing him/her of that fact. In the said letter the Executive Director also directed the said Head of the Banking Supervision Division “to freeze forthwith all other bank accounts, financial assets and other assets belonging to Alfred Agbesi Woyome in all other Banks which have not been disclosed to this Office to facilitate the investigations” that the Executive Director had launched into the operations of the said Alfred Agbesi. Woyome. Subsequently and acting in accordance with the provisions of the law, the Executive Director filed an ex parte application at the High Court praying for (1) an order to confirm the freezing of Alfred Agbesi Woyome's afore-mentioned bank account and (2) an order “directing the freezing of the accounts and financial assets of [Alfred Agbesi Woyome) within the jurisdiction including any and all additional accounts not listed herein within the jurisdiction of Ghana pending investigations”. The application was accompanied by an affidavit in support in which a Staff Officer of the EOCO deposed, among other things, to the following: that the applicant was investigating issues of suspected financial loss to the Republic of Ghana involving the award of and payment for contracts for the construction/refurbishment of stadia for CAN 2008 which involved the respondent as a party to the investigations; that the applicant had requested the freezing of the respondent's accounts at the ADB upon reasonable suspicion of financial loss to the state based on facts that were disclosed in other parts of the affidavit; that the state had, through inadvertence paid GHC51,283,480.59 to the respondent “by reason of a claim the legality of which [was] being contested on appeal in the Court of Appeal and which sum the respondent may dissipate by the time of the determination of the appeal”; that the applicant believed that the colossal sum involved would amount to financial waste or loss if the Respondent is allowed to access same for his personal benefit prior to investigation of the questionable basis for the contract awards of the stadia projects for CAN 2008 on sole sourcing and the role allegedly played by the Respondent”; that the grant of the order “would facilitate the investigation, prevent the suspect from enjoying the rest of the proceeds of crime and deny them from dissipating the crime proceeds so as to obliterate evidence or render the outcome of investigations nugatory”. On the 19/1/2012, the ex parte motion was duly moved and the order confirming the freezing order made by the Executive Director granted by the trial High Court. The order of the trial court however stopped short of granting the second relief that the applicant had asked for. Thus the stage was set for the next round of events that culminated in this appeal.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:5.0pt;text-align:justify;mso-pagination: none;border:none;mso-padding-alt:31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt;mso-border-shadow: yes"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua","serif"">On the 1/2/2012, the Executive Director filed a motion on notice (to the respondent/appellant herein) for an order reviewing the order made on the 19/1/2012. The essence of the motion on notice was for the trial court to include in its earlier order “An order directing the freezing of the accounts and financial assets of the Respondent within the jurisdiction including any and all additional accounts not listed herein within the jurisdiction of Ghana pending investigations”. In the accompanying affidavit, the same Staff Officer of EOCO who had deposed to the earlier affidavit deposed to the fact that the trial court had “inadvertently omitted” the applicant's prayer in the second paragraph of its earlier motion paper, to wit the prayer that “An order directing the freezing of the accounts and financial assets of the Respondent within the jurisdiction including any and all additional accounts not listed herein within the jurisdiction of Ghana pending investigations” be made by the trial court. Annexed to the affidavit in support was the earlier ex parte application which was marked "Exhibit EOCO-1”. Also annexed to the affidavit was the drawn up order confirming the freezing of accounts. This was marked “Exhibit EOCO-2.” As said already, this application was made on notice and accordingly therefore served on the respondent/appellant herein. As was to be expected, the respondent/appellant filed an affidavit in opposition to the motion for review. The main thrust of this affidavit in opposition was to the effect that the respondent had filed an application at the High Court for an order of interim injunction to restrain the applicant from investigating the respondent and that the grant of the motion for review would prejudice the fair hearing of respondent's application. Annexed to the affidavit in opposition was the motion on notice for interlocutory injunction and accompanying affidavit (Exhibit 1 and several annexures). </main>
