Former Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) Managing Director Asante Kwaku Berko, has been convicted in the United States over his alleged involvement in a bribery and money laundering scheme linked to a power plant project in Ghana.
A federal jury in Brooklyn found Mr. Berko guilty on all counts in the indictment on Thursday, August 6, 2026, following a nine-day trial before US District Judge Diane Gujarati at the Eastern District of New York.
Mr. Berko, a dual Ghanaian-American citizen and former Goldman Sachs executive, was convicted of conspiracy to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), violating the FCPA and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
The case centred on allegations that Mr. Berko and his associates conspired to pay more than US$1 million in bribes to Ghanaian government officials to facilitate the award of a multimillion-dollar power plant project to Turkish energy company Aksa Enerji Uretim A.S.
US prosecutors alleged that Mr. Berko used the American financial system to facilitate transactions connected to the alleged bribery scheme.
The disputed power project was under development and financing between December 2014 and July 2015, when Mr. Berko was an executive director in Goldman Sachs’ investment banking division.
He was involved in managing the transaction between the bank’s client, Aksa Enerji, and the Republic of Ghana.
Mr. Berko has been remanded in custody pending sentencing.
He is scheduled to appear before the court for sentencing on November 10, 2026, with the charges carrying maximum combined penalties of up to 30 years in prison.
The former TOR chief executive was extradited to the United States in July 2024 after spending time in the United Kingdom.
He had been arrested in November 2022 following the issuance of an Interpol Red Notice.
The conviction brings a lengthy US investigation and prosecution to a significant stage, with Mr. Berko now facing the possibility of a lengthy prison sentence over the alleged corruption scheme
