Accra, Nov. 12, GNA – Justice Kweku Tawiah Ackaah-Boafo, a Supreme Court Judge, has called for effective legal and institutional responses to the growing complexity of financial and cyber-enabled crimes.
He said such offences often involved intricate financial transactions, multiple layers of transfers and complex digital trails, requiring careful examination of evidence and sound legal reasoning.
Justice Ackaah-Boafo made the call at the opening of a two-day training programme for 40 High Court judges on the adjudication of financial crimes and recovery of criminal assets in Ghana.
The training is aimed at equipping the judges to assess financial and digital evidence, determine criminal liability and adjudicate applications for the restraint, forfeiture and confiscation of assets in accordance with the law.
Justice Ackaah-Boafo, who is also Acting Director of the Judicial Training Institute (JTI), said the increasing liberalisation of the global economy and expansion of international trade had been accompanied by a rise in cross-border financial and related crimes.
He said the familiar expression in financial circles, “Follow the money,” required more than tracing transactions in cases involving financial crimes.
“It requires the courts to carefully examine the evidence, establish the nexus between suspected proceeds of crime and the persons alleged to be involved, and ultimately determine the matters fairly and in accordance with the law,” he said.
Justice Ackaah-Boafo said the importance of the judiciary’s role was further underscored by Ghana’s Third Round of Mutual Evaluation of its Anti-Money Laundering, Countering the Financing of Terrorism and Countering the Financing of Proliferation framework.
“This evaluation assesses the effectiveness of the Country’s legal, institutional and operational measures to combat these offences and facilitate the recovery of criminal proceeds.”
Justice Ackaah-Boafo urged the participants to remain curious, share their experiences and draw practical lessons from the sessions.
“Remember that money may change hands, cross boarders and disappear behind layers of transaction, but the truth must ultimately stand the test of evidence and the law,” he said.
In a speech read on his behalf, Mr Albert Kwadwo Boafo, Chief Executive Officer of the Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC), said financial crimes had evolved significantly, with criminal networks using increasingly sophisticated methods to conceal illicit assets.
He said such networks operated through multiple bank accounts, money smuggling, money laundering, cross-border financial networks, virtual assets and cyber-enabled mechanisms.
“As a result, jurisdictions across the world are challenged by the increasing complexity of investigations, prosecution and assets recovery.
“We need to strengthen our justice system through multiple engagements in financial crime cases,” he said.
Mr Boafo said the training was not merely academic, but sought to strengthen collaboration among investigators, prosecutors and the judiciary in addressing threats posed by financial crimes.
He said the quality of judicial decisions on money laundering, terrorist financing and asset recovery had far-reaching implications for the credibility of the legal system, investor confidence, national security and compliance with international standards.
Mr Boafo urged the judges to develop innovative strategies to strengthen the collective response to financial crimes.
He said judges handling such cases were often required to determine whether sufficient grounds had been established for the recovery of assets.
“This can often be tough. Asset recovery across our jurisdiction also raises complicated factual and legal questions touching on official ownership, third party interests, cross-border evidential threshold and constitutional safeguards.”
Mr Boafo said achieving a fair balance among the competing considerations, while ensuring that the objectives of justice were met, depended on judges’ proper interpretation of Ghana’s Anti-Money Laundering Act and other applicable legislation.
GNA
Edited by Kenneth Sackey
12 Nov. 2026
Reporter: Joyce Danso