OSP Arrests Former GRA Officials Over SML Contracts
- The OSP has arrested the former Commissioner-General of the Ghana Revenue Authority, Rev Dr Ammishaddai, over the SML contract
- Two others, including a former commissioner of customs and SML’s current managing director, were also arrested by the NIB
- The arrests are linked to ongoing investigations into alleged corruption and irregularities in contracts between the GRA and SML
The Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has arrested the former Commissioner-General of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), Rev Dr Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah, and two others in connection with the Strategic Mobilisation Ghana Limited (SML) contract.
The two others arrested are the former commissioner of customs and current general manager at SML, Isaac Crentsil, and the former technical adviser, now managing director and chief executive officer of SML, Christian Tetteh Sottie.
Source: UGC
According to media reports, the three were arrested on Tuesday, June 24, 2025, by operatives of the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB).
Rev Dr Ammishaddai Owusu-Amoah and the other suspects were held in NIB cells after failing to meet bail conditions.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, June 25, 2025, the OSP explained that the arrests are linked to ongoing investigations into alleged corruption and corruption-related offences related to contracts between the GRA and SML for revenue assurance services.
"The arrests are linked to ongoing investigations into suspected corruption and corruption-related offences in respect of contracts between the GRA and SML for revenue assurance services. The probe also seeks to verify SML’s claims that its services have been saving the nation significant revenues. Owusu-Amoah, Crentsil and Sottie were detained last night after failing to meet bail conditions," the OSP statement read.
OSP questions Rev Dr Owusu-Amoah and others
The three former GRA officials currently in the NIB custody were questioned by the OSP upon their arrest.
Some of them reportedly transitioned from the GRA to SML and played critical roles in securing and managing the contracts.
According to a report by Manasseh Azure Awuni, Dr Isaac Crentsil, who served as the GRA’s Commissioner of Customs when the SML contract was signed, now works as the General Manager at SML.
He held the role of Commissioner of Customs from 2017 to 2019 before being seconded to the Ministry of Finance as a technical advisor until he retired from the GRA in September 2022.
Before he was appointed Commissioner, Dr Crentsil led the Post Clearance Audit Unit of the Customs Division from 2015 to 2017.
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The SML scandal
The SML scandal was uncovered in an investigative documentary by three former reporters of The Fourth Estate, Evans Aziamor-Mensah, Adwoa Adobea-Owusu, and Manasseh Azure Awuni, after a year-long probe into the company’s questionable operations.
When confronted with evidence, SML reportedly failed to justify its claims about the services it provided and the amount it allegedly saved the government through its operations.
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By the end of 2023, the company had allegedly received over $141 million from the government for contracts that violated several laws, including the Public Procurement Act (PPA).
According to the investigation by the journalists, SML, which started as a timber company, was incorporated on Valentine’s Day in 2017, just a month after the Akufo-Addo administration assumed office.
Since then, it has allegedly benefited from multiple lucrative deals with the GRA and the Ministry of Finance.
Ken Ofori-Atta linked to SML contract scandal
The scandal is one of the reasons the Special Prosecutor has declared former Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, wanted over suspected corruption and related offences.
He is accused of masterminding the consolidated SML contract in 2023, which entitled the company to earn over $100 million annually for five years, with an option to renew for another five.
Source: Getty Images
Ken Ofori-Atta declared wanted by EOCO
Earlier, YEN.com.gh reported that the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) and the National Intelligence Bureau (NIB) were after Ken Ofori-Atta.
Deputy Attorney General Justice Srem-Sai said the government had initiated processes to extradite the ex-Finance Minister from the US.
The Office of the Attorney General would lead the coordination of efforts to extradite Ofori-Atta along with foreign governments.
Proofreading by Samuel Gitonga, copy editor at YEN.com.gh.
Source: YEN.com.gh
