Ghana minister arrested after $1m cash scandal

Ghana's former Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources Cecilia Dapaah has been arrested by the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) after the reported theft of $1m (£780,000) cash from her house.

According to the OSP, the former minister was placed under house arrest on Sunday 22 July on “suspected corruption and corruption-related offences”.

Many Ghanaians and anti-corruption campaigners have questioned how a public servant could have so much money stashed in their home amid an economic crisis in Ghana.

“Ms Dapaah is being questioned by authorised Officers of the OSP,” the statement on Monday reads.

Ghana's President Nana Akufo-Addo accepted her resignation on Saturday following a public outcry.

According to local media reports, the money was uncovered after two of her domestic staff were accused of stealing $1m in cash, along with €300,000 and several million Ghana cedis, as well as some personal items.

"I can state emphatically that those figures do not represent correctly what my husband and I reported to the police, I am very much aware of the import of such stories around someone in my position," Ms Dapaah said.

"I intend to cooperate fully with all state agencies to enable them fully establish the facts," she added.