The Attorney-General has moved swiftly to challenge the Court of Appeal’s decision acquitting and discharging former Microfinance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC) Chief Executive Officer Sedina Tamakloe-Attionu, directing prosecutors to file an immediate appeal at the Supreme Court and seek an order to prevent her release.
In a statement issued on July 30, the Office of the Attorney-General and Ministry of Justice said the Director of Public Prosecutions had been instructed to file both a notice of appeal and an application for a stay of execution of the appellate court’s judgment.
The move means the state will ask the Supreme Court to suspend the effect of Thursday’s ruling while the appeal is being heard.
“The Attorney-General remains committed to the due process of law and is confident that the appeal before the Supreme Court will succeed,” the statement said.
The Court of Appeal had earlier ruled that the prosecution failed to prove its case against Tamakloe-Attionu beyond reasonable doubt, overturning her conviction and 10-year prison sentence imposed by the High Court in April 2024.
Tamakloe-Attionu had been convicted in absentia on 72 counts relating to the alleged misappropriation and diversion of public funds during her tenure at MASLOC between 2013 and 2016.
According to the Attorney-General’s statement, she was originally charged with 78 counts, including conspiracy to steal, causing financial loss to the state, money laundering and offences under the Public Procurement Act.
The High Court’s Financial Division 2, presided over by Justice Afia Serwaa Asare-Botwe, sentenced her to 10 years’ imprisonment.
The former MASLOC CEO was extradited from the United States and returned to Ghana on June 9, 2026, before beginning her prison sentence at the Nsawam Medium-Security Female Prison on June 24, while her appeal was pending.
She had travelled to the United States in 2021 with permission from the High Court for medical treatment during her trial but did not return to continue the proceedings.
The Attorney-General’s decision to appeal ensures that the legal battle will now move to the Supreme Court, where the state will seek to reinstate the conviction and custodial sentence.
If the Supreme Court grants the stay application, Tamakloe-Attionu could remain in custody pending the determination of the appeal. If the application is refused, the Court of Appeal’s ruling would take immediate effect.
The case remains one of Ghana’s most closely watched public-sector corruption prosecutions, with significant legal questions surrounding trials in absentia, extradition, and the prosecution of alleged financial crimes involving public officials.
