The Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) has launched an investigation into Sarkodie Baffour Awuah and Partners, a law firm where Manhyia North MP Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah is a senior partner. EOCO is probing suspected financial and economic crimes, including allegations of criminal conspiracy, causing financial loss to SIC Savings and Loans, money laundering, and possible tax-related offences.
EOCO has invoked Section 19 of the Economic and Organised Crime Office Act, 2010 (Act 804), to demand extensive financial and operational documentation from the law firm. The requested records include audited financial statements covering a nine-year period from 2017 to 2025, as well as documentary evidence demonstrating compliance with tax obligations to the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA).
The investigative agency is seeking specific records of payments relating to corporate income tax, Value Added Tax (VAT), applicable statutory levies, and withholding tax. EOCO has also directed the law firm to provide a comprehensive inventory of all bank accounts maintained in its name, alongside corresponding account statements covering the entire nine-year period under investigation.
Beyond financial documentation, EOCO is seeking copies of the firm's business operating permit issued by the relevant local government authority, evidence of subsequent renewals, and particulars of individuals employed by the practice. The law firm has been instructed to provide all requested records and information to the investigative agency by November 6, 2026.
The development brings the legal practice associated with the Manhyia North legislator within the scope of EOCO's document gathering exercise. However, the request for records does not, in itself, establish criminal wrongdoing by the law firm or its partners, and the allegations remain subject to investigation.
The investigation concerns allegations of financial crimes, including money laundering and causing financial loss to SIC Savings and Loans. EOCO's efforts aim to obtain financial and operational information relevant to the suspected offences under investigation and establish the circumstances surrounding the matters involving SIC Savings and Loans.
Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah, the Manhyia North MP, serves as a senior partner at Sarkodie Baffour Awuah and Partners. The law firm's involvement in the investigation may have implications for the MP, although no conclusions have been drawn at this stage. The case is ongoing, with the law firm required to cooperate with EOCO's investigation.
Key points
- EOCO seeks 9 years of financial records from Sarkodie Baffour Awuah and Partners amid allegations of financial crimes.
- The investigation concerns allegations of criminal conspiracy, causing financial loss to SIC Savings and Loans, money laundering, and possible tax-related offences.
- The law firm has been instructed to provide all requested records and information to the investigative agency by November 6, 2026.
