Dame Warns AG Over Airport Arrest: Disobey Court, Face Contempt

A legal showdown is brewing between the former Attorney General and the current one, following the arrest of former NAFCO CEO Hanan Abdul-Wahab at the Accra International Airport on Saturday night, an action his legal team is condemning as a “blatant violation” of a subsisting High Court order.

Godfred Yeboah Dame, former Attorney General and counsel for Hanan Abdul-Wahab, has accused the current Attorney General, Dr. Dominic Ayine; his deputy, Dr. Justice Srem Sai; and the Director of the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) of deliberately disobeying judicial authority. Dame has announced plans to initiate contempt proceedings against the trio, escalating tensions over the legality of Saturday night’s arrest of Hanan.

The controversy stems from an order issued on June 29, 2026, by a Court of Appeal judge sitting as an additional High Court judge. According to Dame, this order explicitly granted Mr. Abdul-Wahab permission to travel to the United Kingdom for a scheduled medical appointment with his optician, from July 4 to July 12. The ruling, which was made after submissions from both the defence and prosecution, including Dr. Srem Sai, aligned with established precedents that permit accused persons to travel for medical care.

However, the departure was halted when state security operatives arrested Hanan Abdul-Wahab at the airport. In a subsequent Facebook post, Deputy Attorney General Dr. Srem Sai justified the arrest, alleging that Mr. Abdul-Wahab had attempted “to use false means to empty his frozen bank account with Republic Bank.” The post further indicated that the Attorney General would seek a review of the travel order on Monday.

Dame has rejected this narrative. In a sharply worded statement issued on Sunday, July 5, the defence team labelled the allegations as “false” and “misleading.”

“There is no iota of truth in the claim that our client attempted to withdraw funds from any account,” Mr. Dame stated. “We challenge the Deputy Attorney General to produce evidence of a withdrawal of any sum by our client from any of his bank accounts since the date of the court order.”

The legal team further argues that the foundation of the arrest is legally unsound, insisting that no valid court order freezing the former NAFCO CEO’s accounts existed at the time of his detention.

They clarified that the freezing orders in question were tied to an earlier prosecution, which was withdrawn on May 5, 2026, resulting in Hanan Abdul-Wahab’s discharge.

 

“All orders made by the High Court, relating to bail and freezing orders, in respect of his earlier prosecution lapsed following the withdrawal of the charges,” the statement explained.

While fresh charges were filed on May 15, 2026, Godfred Dame pointed to a ruling by the High Court at Adentan on May 20, 2026, which characterized the new prosecution as “a fresh process,” thus rendering previous freezing orders null and void.

Dame noted that this legal position had been formally communicated to the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) about two weeks prior to the arrest.

Describing the airport detention as a “wilful violation of the authority of the High Court,” the defence has confirmed it will move forward with contempt proceedings against the leadership of the Attorney General’s Department and the BNI.

This move sets the stage for a significant legal confrontation, as the executive branch stands accused of ignoring the explicit directives of the judiciary.

Mr. Abdul-Wahab is currently standing trial on charges of stealing and causing financial loss to the Republic. The Attorney General’s Office had not issued a formal response to the contempt threat or the specific allegations of unlawful arrest at the time of filing this report.