Lawyers for Dr. Mustapha Abdul-Hamid, former Chief Executive Officer of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), say they are fully prepared to challenge what they describe as baseless charges of extortion and abuse of office brought against him by the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP).

Speaking on Citi FM’s Eyewitness News on Friday, July 18, Dr. Abdul-Hamid’s lead counsel, Joseph Kpemka — a former Deputy Attorney General — confirmed that his client has officially been charged and is scheduled to appear in court on Wednesday, July 23.

“We have received the charge sheet. They have charged my client with extortion and using his official office for private gain. We will appear in court, but we have absolutely denied the charges, and we remain confident that these accusations will not hold,” Mr. Kpemka stated.

Mr. Kpemka expressed skepticism about the strength of the prosecution’s case, asserting that the OSP lacks the evidence necessary to prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt.

“We are prepared to establish during the trial that the prosecution will not be able to substantiate these claims,” he said.

The comments come on the heels of a press release from the OSP, which named Dr. Abdul-Hamid among seven individuals and three companies implicated in an alleged GHS280 million extortion and money laundering scheme within the petroleum sector.

In a statement issued by his legal team on Thursday, July 17, Dr. Abdul-Hamid categorically denied the accusations.

His lawyers pointed out that at the time of the OSP’s public announcement, no formal charge sheet had been served on their client.

The legal team further outlined a timeline dating back to February 2025, when the OSP first accused Dr. Abdul-Hamid of embezzling GHS1.3 billion from the Unified Petroleum Pricing Fund (UPPF).

In response, the former NPA boss demanded a retraction on February 17 — a request his lawyers say was ignored.

He was subsequently invited for questioning on February 25 regarding alleged mismanagement of the UPPF and procurement breaches.

According to his lawyers, the allegations have since evolved from embezzlement and procurement infractions to charges of extortion and money laundering, with the alleged amount also revised down from GHS1.3 billion to GHS280 million.

The OSP now alleges that Dr. Abdul-Hamid personally received GHS24 million as part of the extortion scheme, which reportedly targeted oil marketing companies and petroleum transporters.

As the case prepares to move into the courtroom, Dr. Abdul-Hamid’s legal team has vowed to vigorously contest the charges and demonstrate that the accusations are politically motivated and unsupported by credible evidence.

“The truth will prevail in court,” Mr. Kpemka said.