The Accra Circuit Court presided over by Her Honour Basilia Adjei-Tawiah has granted bail to a 31-year-old banker, Lawrence Avorsey, who is on trial for allegedly stealing more than GH¢164,000 from Access Bank Ghana Ltd.
Avorsey, who has pleaded not guilty, was admitted to bail in the sum of GH¢150,000 with two sureties, one of whom must be justified.
He was first arraigned on February 17, 2025, after investigators linked him to a series of fraudulent transactions carried out between May 2023 and November 2024 while working at the bank’s Spintex branch.
He is facing two charges — stealing, contrary to Section 124(1) of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29), and abetment of crime, contrary to Sections 20(1) and 124(1) of the same Act.
The prosecution has also named three alleged accomplices, identified as Rita Kaledzi, Abigail Adjei Dzanie and Richard Mawuli Torsu, who remain at large and are being sought for abetment of crime.
According to Chief Inspector Ofori-Appiah, who is leading the prosecution, Avorsey exploited his position by manipulating transaction reversals and diverting funds into accounts belonging to the accomplices.
Investigations revealed that GH¢75,631.55 was channelled into Kaledzi’s account, GH¢16,636.45 into Dzanie’s account, and GH¢72,184.14 into Torsu’s account.
The court heard that the bank detected discrepancies in its General Ledger reconciliations prepared by Avorsey in December 2024. Around the same period, he applied for medical leave and tendered his resignation, which the bank did not approve.
He eventually stopped reporting for duty, and subsequent checks on December 18, 2024, revealed the missing funds.
Internal investigations also showed that the accounts belonging to Kaledzi and Torsu had been opened by Avorsey. CCTV footage later captured him withdrawing cash with an ATM card linked to Dzanie’s account, further implicating him in the scheme.
The prosecution informed the court that Avorsey had made partial repayments, including GH¢8,000 during the initial stages of the case, GH¢5,000 handed over to the complainant in April, and GH¢2,000 during a sitting on July 7, 2025.
As part of his bail conditions, he is to deposit his passport with the court registry and report to the case investigator every other Tuesday.
The presiding judge upheld these conditions at the most recent hearing, during which an amended charge sheet was also accepted, and the accused reaffirmed his not guilty plea.
The complaint was lodged by Phyllis Kyei, a supervisor at the Spintex branch, who worked alongside Avorsey at the time.
Police investigators, led by Detective Inspector Kwabena Akowua, are pursuing the three alleged accomplices.
The matter has been adjourned to October 14, 2025, to allow the prosecution to complete its disclosure filing and for further investigations.
