Former Chief Executive Officer of the National Food Buffer Stock Company (NAFCO), Hanan Abdul Wahab Aludiba, has been arrested at the Accra International Airport over allegations that he attempted to use false means to access funds in a frozen bank account.

The arrest was disclosed by the Deputy Attorney General, Dr. Justice Srem Sai, in a Facebook post on Saturday.

According to Dr. Srem Sai, Abdul Wahab, who is standing trial on charges of stealing and causing financial loss to the Republic, had been granted permission by the High Court to travel to the United Kingdom for a short period. He, however, said subsequent developments led to the intervention of law enforcement officers.

“Law enforcement officers have, a while ago, arrested Mr. Hanan Abdul Wahab Aludiba at the Accra International Airport,” Dr. Srem Sai wrote. “It was, however, Mr. Aludiba’s attempt to use false means to empty his frozen bank account with Republic Bank on Thursday which occasioned tonight’s arrest.”

The Deputy Attorney General further disclosed that the Attorney General would, on Monday, apply to the High Court to review the order granting Abdul Wahab permission to travel outside the country.

The arrest has, however, sparked a legal dispute, with lawyers for Abdul Wahab announcing plans to commence contempt proceedings against the Attorney General, the Deputy Attorney General and the Director of the Bureau of National Investigations, alleging that they deliberately violated a valid High Court order.

In a statement issued on Sunday, counsel for Abdul Wahab, Godfred Yeboah Dame, rejected the explanation offered by Dr. Srem Sai, describing his claims as false.

According to the defence, the High Court, presided over by Justice Achibonga, granted Abdul Wahab permission on June 29 to travel to the United Kingdom from July 4 to July 12 to attend a medical appointment with his optician.

The lawyers stated that the application was granted after hearing submissions from both the defence and the prosecution, including Dr. Srem Sai, and argued that the decision was consistent with previous court rulings permitting accused persons facing criminal trials to travel abroad for medical and other legitimate reasons.

The defence also dismissed allegations that Abdul Wahab attempted to withdraw money from a frozen Republic Bank account before leaving Ghana.

The statement challenged 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.”

Mr. Dame further argued that no valid freezing order existed at the time of the alleged attempt to access the account. He contended that any earlier freezing orders ceased to have effect after the prosecution withdrew previous charges against Abdul Wahab on May 5, 2026, resulting in his discharge.

The defence also referred to a ruling by the High Court at Adentan on May 20, 2026, following the filing of fresh charges on May 15, stating that the court held that Abdul Wahab’s re-arrest constituted “a fresh process,” which, according to the lawyers, meant there was no subsisting freezing order.

Describing the airport arrest as “a blatant and wilful violation” of the High Court’s order, Mr. Dame said the legal team would initiate contempt proceedings against the Attorney General, the Deputy Attorney General and the Director of the Bureau of National Investigations.