Former Microfinance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC) Chief Executive Sedina Tamakloe Attionu has been cleared of all criminal charges after Ghana’s Court of Appeal overturned the High Court judgment that had sentenced her to 10 years in prison.
The decision was delivered unanimously by a three-member panel made up of Justices Emmanuel Ankamah, Emmanuel Senyo Amedahe and Samuel Obeng-Diawuo. The judges said the prosecution had not established its case beyond reasonable doubt and faulted the trial court for departing from the constitutional principle that an accused person is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
The court also criticised aspects of the prosecution’s conduct and held that the evidence presented was insufficient to support the convictions. It said the detailed reasons for its ruling would be contained in a 94-page judgment expected to be released later on Thursday.
Ms Tamakloe was convicted by the High Court in April 2024 after a trial that began in January 2019. She had faced 78 charges, including stealing, conspiracy to steal, causing financial loss to the state, improper payment of public funds, unauthorised commitment and money laundering, linked to allegations that she misappropriated public funds during her tenure at MASLOC. The Court of Appeal has now set aside those convictions and ordered that she be acquitted and discharged.
