• Chairman Wontumi has been sentenced to 20 years in prison, the most senior NPP official convicted so far in Ghana’s ongoing anti-corruption crackdown.

• At least 10 NPP-linked or NPP-appointed officials have been arrested, detained, or investigated by EOCO and NIB since 2025.

• Cases span illegal mining, payroll fraud, procurement irregularities, and unauthorised fund transfers.

• All individuals besides Wontumi are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.

Justice Audrey Kocuvie-Tay, presiding over the Criminal Division of the High Court, delivered the judgment on Monday, July 20, 2026, bringing to a close one of Ghana’s most closely watched galamsey prosecutions. The Ashanti Regional Chairman of the opposition NPP was convicted under the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703), as amended, for offences including assigning mineral rights without ministerial approval and facilitating an unlicensed mining operation.

Alongside the custodial sentence, the court imposed a fine of 10,000 penalty units, equivalent to GH¢120,000, with a default term of three years’ imprisonment should he fail to pay. The court ordered that the custodial sentence and the default term run concurrently. His company, Akonta Mining Limited, was also convicted and fined 15,000 penalty units. Before sentencing, his lawyers, led by Samuel Atta Akyea, urged the court to impose the minimum 15-year term, citing his cooperation with investigators and lack of a prior criminal record, but the court settled on 20 years.

Wontumi’s conviction makes him the most senior sitting NPP official to be convicted since Ghana’s anti-corruption agencies intensified their crackdown on former government appointees and party figures following the 2024 election. Here’s the full list of NPP-linked individuals arrested, detained, or facing charges since 2025:

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NPP Ashanti Regional Chairman. Arrested by EOCO on 27 May 2025 and now convicted and sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment over illegal mining linked to Akonta Mining on the Samreboi concession. He also faces a separate GEXIM Bank case involving more than GH¢30 million in alleged financial loss to the Ghana Export-Import Bank.

Former Executive Director, National Service Authority. Arrested by NIB in October 2025 over alleged ghost names, payroll fraud and money laundering amounting to approximately GH¢650 million.

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Former Executive Secretary, IMCCoD, and NPP Director of Communications. Arrested by EOCO in July 2026 over alleged procurement and financial irregularities at IMCCoD amounting to approximately GH¢55 million.

Provencal Former Managing Director, BOST. Arrested by EOCO on 10 November 2025 over alleged financial irregularities involving BOST and the Gold-for-Oil programme.

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Former NAFCO CEO. Arrested by NIB and EOCO in July 2026 after allegedly attempting to withdraw money from a frozen account while standing trial over an earlier financial loss case valued at GH¢78 million.

Former Director-General, National Signals Bureau. Arrested by EOCO on 20 March 2025 over alleged diversion of funds meant for a cyber-defence system, amounting to approximately GH¢49.1 million.

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Leader of the Liberal Party of Ghana. Investigated by EOCO from 3 September 2025 over alleged fraud, financial loss, dissipation of public funds, document falsification and money laundering.

Former Managing Director, GIHOC. Arrested by EOCO on 29 April 2026 over alleged financial irregularities involving GIHOC resources.

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The former GIIF Board Chairman and former GIIF CEO respectively were investigated by NIB and EOCO over the alleged unauthorised transfer of $2 million in public funds to Africa Investor Holdings, tied to the stalled Accra Sky Train project.

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Former Deputy Executive Director, National Service Authority. Detained by NIB in March 2025 over the same ghost-names payroll fraud scandal implicating Osei Assibey Antwi. She was later granted bail after cooperating with investigators.