The Attorney-General has revealed disturbing details of an alleged multi-million-cedi fraud involving Percival Kofi Akpaloo, founder of the Liberal Party of Ghana (LPG), following investigations triggered by a suspicious transaction report filed by the Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC).
According to the Attorney-General, the FIC flagged unusual transactions on an account held at First Bank Ghana by Pomaah Universal (Gh.) Ltd, prompting the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) to open a full-scale investigation.
Investigators established that the legitimate recipient of a COCOBOD feeder road contract valued at over GH¢29.5 million, awarded in December 2020, was Pomaa Universal (Gh.) Ltd, a company wholly owned by Akua Pomaa. The project commenced and initial payments were correctly made into Pomaa Universal’s account.
However, subsequent payments raised red flags.
EOCO’s investigations revealed that Mr. Akpaloo allegedly secretly incorporated a parallel company, Pomaah Universal (Gh.) Ltd, intentionally crafted to closely resemble the original contractor’s name, differing only by the addition of the letter “h.”
Between December 2022 and June 2024, COCOBOD reportedly issued eight cheques in the name of Pomaa Universal (Gh.) Ltd, amounting to GH¢3,169,432.22.
The Attorney-General says Mr. Akpaloo collected these cheques and deposited them into the account of his own look-alike company at First Bank Ghana.
Crucially, investigations confirmed that Akua Pomaa had no knowledge of the existence of Pomaah Universal (Gh.) Ltd or the diversion of funds. She only became aware of the situation in June 2024, when COCOBOD contacted her over outstanding balances on the contract.
Upon further inquiry, she allegedly discovered that Mr. Akpaloo had collected and redirected the payments without her consent. She also accused him of forging her signature on the COCOBOD contract, using her former name, Mercy Owusu, to unlawfully secure the agreement.
First Bank Ghana’s internal probe corroborated the fraud allegations, concluding that Mr. Akpaloo knowingly misrepresented ownership of the cheques and deposited them into an unauthorised account. The bank admitted to operational lapses, including failure to detect discrepancies between cheque payee names and the beneficiary account.
The suspects named in the investigations are Percival Kofi Akpaloo, Pomaah Universal (Gh.) Ltd, and Delvine Akpaloo, the spouse of Mr. Akpaloo.
The Attorney-General says the evidence points to the commission of serious criminal offences, including stealing, forgery, and money laundering. The suspects are expected to be formally charged in January
