Asante Berko: Ex-TOR MD extradited to US over bribes allegedly paid to Ghanaian officials

A former Managing Director of Ghana’s Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) Asante Kwaku Berko has been extradited from the United Kingdom to the United States to face charges related to a bribery and money laundering scheme involving Ghanaian officials.

Berko, aged 50, is accused of participating in a multi-year scheme where he allegedly paid over $70,000 in bribes to Ghanaian government officials between December 2014 and March 2017.

These bribes were allegedly intended to secure and retain business transactions for a Turkish energy company in Ghana.

The U.S. Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs collaborated with the UK government, the National Central Bureau of INTERPOL, and the U.S. Marshals Service to facilitate Berko’s extradition.

Announcing the extradition, Nicole Argentieri, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General, along with U.S. Attorney Breon Peace for the Eastern District of New York and Executive Assistant Director Michael Nordwall of the FBI detailed the charges against Berko.

These include one count of conspiring to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), one count of violating the FCPA, and one count of conspiring to commit money laundering.

Berko, formerly an executive director in the investment banking division of a U.S. global investment firm, allegedly used U.S. financial systems to facilitate the laundering of bribe payments.

If convicted, Berko faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for conspiring to commit money laundering, in addition to five years for each count of violating the FCPA and conspiring to violate the FCPA.

The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Elina A. Rubin-Smith of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, along with Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alixandra Smith, Tara McGrath, and Jessica Weigel for the Eastern District of New York.

Berko’s involvement centered on securing and managing a deal between the Turkish energy company and the Republic of Ghana to construct and finance a power plant.

SOURCE: NEWS AGENCIES