The Economic and Organised Crime Office’s attempt to arrest Manhyia South MP Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah at the Accra High Court sparked sharp criticism from former Tamale Central MP Inusah Fuseini. Fuseini said the court premises were too volatile for such an operation and questioned the legal basis for EOCO’s actions.
Fuseini spoke about the incident on JoyNews’ Newsfile on Saturday, September 26. He said, “My fundamental difficulty with what happened on the court premises is simply this: I think that that place was so volatile for arrest to happen there.”
EOCO made the attempted arrest on September 23 as part of an ongoing investigation. The agency said Mr Awuah had previously ignored two invitations to appear in February 2026. EOCO described its move as lawful and necessary to secure the MP’s cooperation.
Fuseini challenged this justification. He said EOCO had not shown that Mr Awuah committed an offence in their presence, nor had they demonstrated reasonable suspicion that he had committed a crime in the past. “Well, EOCO has not told us that there was a basis for effecting a warrantless arrest. But EOCO was continuing on the trajectory of their letter for investigations,” he said.
Asked if he believed there was legal grounds for a warrantless arrest, Fuseini said no. “No, because no crime had been committed in their presence,” he added.
The former MP also questioned why EOCO chose to attempt the arrest on the court’s premises. He described the approach as “problematic.” “I think that the approach was problematic because why would they go and try to arrest him at the court premises?” he said.
Fuseini noted that the initial interaction between the EOCO official and Mr Awuah had been civil and cordial. He wondered why the situation escalated after that. “Probably they knew that was why, in the first instance when the approach was made, the lady was very civil, cordial, and respectful. Why a sudden change should have drawn their attention to the fact that this thing was potentially explosive, and that could bring them into some sort of criticism,” Fuseini said.
EOCO responded by saying the operation was not completed after the situation escalated and officers assessed that further action could endanger public safety. The agency reaffirmed that the investigation remains active and that it will review video evidence before deciding on next steps.
The controversy raises questions about the limits of EOCO’s powers and the safeguards around arresting sitting MPs, especially in sensitive locations like courts. The balance between enforcing investigations and respecting legal and institutional protocols remains under scrutiny as this case develops.
According to Joy Online.
