Starmer here to assist SFO

Page 31: Daily Graphic, March 2, 2010.
Story: Albert K. Salia
THE Director of Public Prosecutions for England and Wales, Mr Keir Starmer, is in the country to hold discussions with stakeholders in Ghana’s criminal justice system with the view to strengthening relations between Ghana and the United Kingdom.
The discussions are centred on offering training to and equipping some of Ghana’s crime fighting agencies, particularly the Serious Fraud Office (SFO), which is currently being re-positioned as the Economic and Organised Crime Agency with an expanded mandate to deal with money laundering, cyber fraud, among others.
At a meeting with the leadership of the SFO, Mr Starmer pledged the commitment of the UK to assist Ghana with the requisite training for staff of the SFO and provide logistics for the organisation.
He noted, for instance, that while some SFO staff were already receiving training, the stay of the Head of Governance and Justice at the British High Commission, Mr Roger Coventry, had been extended from nine to 19 months.
He said international collaboration held the key to fighting organised crime, hence the UK’s support to Ghana to help it contribute efficiently and effectively to dealing with the menace.
Mr Starmer said organised crime was a menace to the world and that it was only through joint collaborations by states that a major headway could be made.
He expressed satisfaction with the widening of the remit of the SFO and pledged continuous support to the new agency when it became operational.
The Board Chairman of the SFO, Mr Justice Amonoo Monney, expressed appreciation to the UK government for the support so far and explained that with the expansion of the mandate of the SFO, personnel of the agency would require more expert training to enable them to confront the challenges of fighting organised crime.
The Executive Director of the SFO, Mr Biadela Mortey Akpadzi, said it looked forward to recruiting more personnel to enable it to deal with its expanded mandate.
He said the SFO would also be prosecuting on the authority of the Attorney-General, hence the need to ensure that staff were adequately trained in investigations, monitoring and prosecutions.