Attorney-General rejects conditional plea bargain proposals

The Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Dr Dominic Ayine, says he has turned down plea bargain proposals involving about GH¢38 million because the proposals were tied to suspects refunding money without facing full criminal proceedings.

Dr Ayine said repayment alone could not replace prosecution in cases where alleged criminal acts had caused loss to the state.

He said such arrangements did not meet the standard required under the law.

He made the clarification while responding to questions at a press briefing dubbed the Government Accountability Series in Accra on Monday, [December 22, 2025].

“Yes, offers keep being made, but sometimes the offers are made conditional on people bringing their money and walking away, and I say no,” Dr Ayine said.

He explained that Ghana’s laws allow plea bargaining, but his office would not support deals that weaken the criminal justice process, especially in cases involving large sums of public funds.

“I am the Attorney General. I am the prosecutor. I am not defence counsel,” Dr Ayine said. “What I want to do is make my case to the court and prove beyond reasonable doubt that the offences I am charging have been committed.”

He said the law allows accused persons to plead guilty, make restitution and, in some cases, plead to lesser charges. He added that such steps must come from the accused persons and their lawyers, not from the prosecution.

“If they want to shorten the process through plea bargaining, it is left to them. I will not advise them, and I will not be the one to provide that advice,” he said.