Airbus Scandal: Amidu Justifies Red Alert Notice . . . Fires "Inexperienced" & "Unethical" Lawyers For Describing It As Fake

The Special Prosecutor, Martin Amidu has debunked allegations that he is deliberating witch-hunting Samuel Adam Mahama, brother of former President John Dramani Mahama.

This follows a red alert notice issued by Interpol for the arrest of Samuel Adam Foster (Mahama) and three others over their involvement in the Airbus scandal.

A statement issued by the Office of the Special Prosecutor stated that “the SP is well known in this country and amongst the community of ethical lawyers and the senior judiciary as a person who had practised the law ethically for upwards of forty years. Some of the unethical lawyers who were assaulting the person and character of the SP on the airwaves are lawyers who are in their twenties and early thirties: they have not been yet cut their teeth at the Ghana Bar. The SP refused to be drawn into the affray of turning law into politics as is the forte of those unethical and inexperienced lawyers with no or very limited distinguished courtroom practice vindicating their standing as lawyers in the Ghana Law Reports,”

Red Alert Fake

The opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) and other pundits had described the red alert notice as fake; insisting that it is not on the official website of Interpol.

Martin Amidu, however, said he was surprised to “learn later and read online that a bunch of young, inexperienced  and unethical lawyers were referring to the Red Notices as fake while at the same time heaping insults and attributing unwarranted motives to the person and character of the SP for doing his work as the Special Prosecutor to fight provable corruption.”

Police Statement

A police statement signed by DSP Juliana Obeng, Head of Public Affairs of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), confirmed that the OSP had made the request to raise a “Red Notice” through the Interpol for the arrest of the ex-President’s younger brother together with his accomplices, namely Sarah Furneaux, Sarah Leanne Davis and Philip Sean Middlemiss, who were all believed to be British.

“Following a request by the Office of the Special Prosecutor through the Criminal Investigation Department to the Interpol General Secretariat, the latter has issued a Red Notice in respect of the following individuals – Samuel Adam Foster, alias Adam Mahama, Philip Sean Middlemiss, Leanne Sarah Davis and Sarah Furneaux,” the statement had said.

It added that “the above mentioned individuals have been published on the Interpol Red Notice in connection with the Airbus scandal being handled by the Office of the Special Prosecutor.”

Four Fugitives

The four individuals are “fugitives wanted for prosecution” for their alleged roles in accepting and paying €3,909,756 as bribe on behalf of Airbus SE to some key Ghanaian public officials from 2009 to 2015.”

On Friday, July 10, 2020, the Interpol published a Red Notice on its public website requesting law enforcement agencies worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest the four individuals, pending their extradition to Ghana.

There is no expiry date of the Red Notice or arrest warrant issued to track down the four individuals.

According to the summary of facts of the case as set out in the Red Notice, between 2009 and 2015, Airbus SE engaged Mr. Mahama, brother of former President John Dramani Mahama, and Mr. Middlemiss to accept and pay €3.9 million as bribe to some Ghanaian public officials to approve the sale of three C-295 military aircraft to the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF).

Read full statement below