The Accra High Court has thrown out a dramatic bid by former National Security Bureau (NSB) Director General, Kwabena Adu-Boahene, and three others, who had demanded access to decades-old National Security records — documents they believe could clear their names of criminal charges.

In a ruling delivered on Thursday, July 3, Justice Eugene Nyadu Nyantei firmly shut the door on the application, which was spearheaded by Adu-Boahene’s legal team, led by the outspoken Samuel Atta Akyea. The defence had hoped to compel the state to hand over operational account records from as far back as 1992 — a demand they claimed would expose “selective prosecution” and prove their innocence.

Atta Akyea did not hold back in court, accusing the Attorney-General’s office of conveniently “cherry-picking” which records to disclose, while allegedly hiding evidence that could absolve the accused.

“It is not for the Attorney-General to decide which disclosures are sweet and which are sour. You cannot play hide and seek with justice,” Atta Akyea argued passionately. He insisted that by selectively revealing bits of the National Security Coordinator’s Special Operations account, the state had opened the floodgates for deeper scrutiny across six different governments — from Rawlings to Mahama.

The application, first filed on June 23, specifically requested operational financial accounts of the National Security Secretariat, spanning nearly three decades. According to the defence, these records were critical to unmask what they called a “politically motivated” prosecution.

But Deputy Attorney-General Dr Justice Srem Sai swiftly shot down the request, calling it a “fishing expedition” with no real connection to the actual charges.

At the heart of the prosecution’s case are allegations that Adu-Boahene, Angela Adjei Boateng, Mildred Donkor, and their company, Advantage Solutions Limited, misappropriated public funds by transferring money from a government account to a private company they secretly owned.

After the judge dismissed the application seeking for national security records, Atta Akyea made a last-ditch plea for a short adjournment to “digest” the ruling and weigh the possibility of an appeal or a stay of proceedings.

“We need time to fully understand this ruling. You cannot rush justice as if it were an ambulance ride,” Atta Akyea fired back when Dr Srem Sai insisted the trial should proceed without delay.

Dr Sai, however, remained unmoved, urging the court to start the substantive trial as scheduled on July 18. The tension in court was palpable, with Atta Akyea accusing the prosecution of “hiding documents” while pushing for what he described as a “hasty trial at all costs.”

With the motion now dismissed, the stage is set for what promises to be a heated trial. Whether Adu-Boahene’s team will uncover the records they claim hold the key to their defence — or if those secrets will remain buried — is a battle that may spill beyond the courtroom in the coming weeks.