The Economic and Organised Crime Office launched a formal investigation into the discovery of multiple ghost names on the payrolls of four district assemblies located in the Ashanti Region. According to a MyJoyOnline report officials detected irregularities during a routine audit of local government financial records. Investigators believe these unauthorized names were used to siphon millions of Ghana Cedis from the state over an extended period.
Executive summaries from the investigation suggest that the fraud involves the manipulation of payment systems to include individuals who are not employed by the assemblies. A report from Citi Newsroom indicates that the Economic and Organised Crime Office is working closely with the Controller and Accountant Generals Department to trace the electronic trail of the illegal payments. The specific districts involved have not been publicly named to avoid compromising the ongoing inquiries.
The anti graft agency is currently scrutinizing the roles of various human resource officers and internal auditors within the affected assemblies. According to an official statement from the Economic and Organised Crime Office authorities have already invited several administrative staff members for questioning. The agency aims to determine if there was a coordinated effort among internal staff to bypass verification protocols.
While the exact total of the misappropriated funds remains under assessment early estimates suggest the loss is significant. A GhanaWeb report states that the investigation will extend to other districts to ensure no similar schemes are operating elsewhere. No formal charges have been filed yet as investigators continue to gather forensic evidence and bank records related to the suspicious accounts.