A former Secretary of the now-defunct Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM), along with Andy Owusu, an aide to the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), Bernard Antwi Boasiako, have been granted bail by the High Court (Criminal Division) in Accra.
Each has been granted bail in the amount of GH₵200,000, with two sureties required—one of whom must be justified. The two appeared in court on Tuesday, May 6, to answer to 15 criminal charges brought against them by the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP), with their pleas officially recorded.
The court has scheduled a Case Management Conference (CMC) for May 29, 2025, to clarify issues, review evidence, and establish a timeline for trial proceedings.
The charges, filed on April 28, allege that between January and February 2019, Charles Bissue—while serving as IMCIM Secretary—accepted a total of GH₵35,000 in bribes from Benjamin Adjapong, both directly and through Owusu. The payments were allegedly made to expedite the renewal of an expired mining licence for ORR Resources Enterprise, despite a lack of required documentation.
Legal counsel for the accused declined to speak to the media following the hearing.
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