The state on Monday withdrew charges levelled against Victor Selormey, former Deputy Minister of Finance in one of the two cases for which he is being tried.

An Accra Circuit Tribunal chaired by Mr Ziblim Imoru granted an application by the Director of Pubic Prosecution (DPP), Mr Osafo Sampong to withdraw charges of causing loss by carelessness to public property against the former minister. No reason was given by the DPP.

Selormey was alleged to have caused the transfer of 68,000 dollars to Leebda Corporation of USA as consultancy fees and 45,000 dollars to LEXDEV International for the purchase of a vehicle.

He pleaded not guilty and was granted 100 million cedis bail.

He is facing another charge at the Fast Tract Court for transferring more than one million cedis to Leebda for the court computerisation project.

Prosecuting Deputy Superintendent of Police Patrick Sarpong had told the tribunal earlier that in February 1998 Selormey caused Metropolitan and Allied Bank, Ghana, to transfer 45,000 dollars to Messrs LEXDEV International, USA, also known as Leebda Corporation. Dr Frederick Owusu Boadu, a friend of Selormey, owns the corporation.

The money was for payment of a vehicle bought by the state under the Trade and Investment Programme (TIP). The prosecution said the invoice quoted 38,301 dollars as the total cost of the vehicle together with all other expenses including freight.

He said the accused nevertheless caused 45,000 dollars to be transferred to purchase the vehicle.

Between August and December 1998, the prosecution said, Selormey again caused the transfer to the same company of 68,000 dollars as payment of consultancy fees.

The government at that time had wanted to study how to make the private sector competitive through legislative and administrative reforms.

The prosecution said the accused quickly and quietly contracted LEXDEV, also known as Leebda, to prepare a consultancy contract without allowing any government representative to see it. He also did not allow it to be studied by the legal department of the ministry.

The case was detected in April this year when the accused was out of office and a report was made to the police for investigation, which revealed that Selormey was careless in over paying for the vehicle as well as "consultancy fees" for preparation of a contract when no work had been done.