Ghana's ex-football chief charged with fraud

The former head of Ghanaian football Kwesi Nyantakyi was on Wednesday charged with fraud at a high court in Accra, after a landmark undercover investigation which exposed widespread graft in African football.

An undercover documentary by journalist Anas Aremeyaw in 2018 sent shockwaves through the game in the West African nation, after showing Nyantkakyi allegedly soliciting kickbacks worth millions of dollars and accusing several footballing officials of corruption.

The former head administrator was also shown allegedly receiving a $65,000 financial inducement.

Appearing in court Nyantakyi plead not-guilty to the charges.

State prosecutors said he was "caught in the documentary executing plans to sign a Memorandum of Understanding" on behalf of a fictitious company.

At the high court trial Nyantakyi was released on bail for $186,000 with the trial set to continue on March 25.

The undercover investigation in 2018 sparked a major shakeup of Ghanaian football with several of the country's referees banned for life and football officials in a number of other African countries sanctioned.

In October that year Nyantakyi was given a life-time ban from all football-related activities by the sport's world governing body FIFA after being found guilty of bribery and corruption.