Businessman files petition against trial judge in Wenchi

A Techiman Businessman, Kwadwo Agyei on Tuesday 4 July,2017, petitioned the Chief Justice of the Republic of Ghana, Her Ladyship Sophia Akuffo, accusing Justice Sarpong of being bias in handling a case before him at Wenchi High Court.

He is appealing to Her Ladyship Justice Sophia Akuffo to respectfully transfer the case from Justice Sarpong’s Court to a different court because he has lost confidence and trust in Justice Sarpong for fair trial in his court. ‘I do not think I can get fair trial in that court’ he impugned.

Justice Sarpong is presiding on a criminal proceeding in which the accused Jacob Adongo and Alhassan Issahaku are being tried at Wenchi High Court for allegedly duping Evame Motor Ghana Limited an International Company headquartered at Lome –Togo with several branches in Ghana the amount of Hundred Thousand Ghana Cedis ( GH¢ 100,000) and some four hundred and forty-one motorbikes and accessories.

‘The Judge has granted the accused persons self-recognizance bail plus a sum of Fifty Thousand Ghana Cedis (GH¢ 50,000) with one surety each on the last adjourned date on the basis that their Lawyer was not in court. The Judge asked the Police to go and conduct further investigations into the matter before he could hear same’. A letter addressed to the Chief Justice stated

Mr. Agyei is contesting the bail condition by the Presiding Judge saying he did not take into consideration the amount involved in the case before him.

In an exclusive telephone conversation with Kwadwo Agyei, he said he does not see professionalism in the conduct of the presiding Judge. He said under no circumstance would a Judge grant a self-recognizance bail in a criminal matter, let alone talk about granting bail without factoring the quantum of money involved.

Read the full petition of Kwadwo Agyei.

Dear Madam,

PETITION TO RE-ASSIGN A CRIMINAL CASE ‘TITLED THE PUBLIC VRS JACOB AGOGO AND ALHASSAN ISSAHAKU PENDING BEFORE HIS LORDSHIP JUSTICE SARPONG AT WENCHI HIGH COURT FROM MR. THEOPHILUS APPOH OF YOUR SUNYANI OFFICE TO A DIFFERENT ATTORNEY

I am a businessman who works with EVAME MOTORS GHANA LIMITED an International company and its Headquarters at Lome-Togo dealers in motorbikes and motor spare parts and resident at Dwomor a suburb of Techiman where agents to the company.

In the year 2012, the managing Director of the Company Mr. Emile Meto sent the Internal Auditor of the company to Techiman to Audit the activities of two accused persons regarding stock received, sales made, lodgment made at the bank and stock on hand among others.

In the middle of the exercise, the internal audit discovered an amount of GH 1,000,000.00 which the accused person could not account for though he had not finished the entire auditing. The Director of the company was inform who came to Ghana to find out why such an abnormality.

The two accused persons then made an attempt to escape and the matter was subsequently reported to the Divisional CID, Wenchi and the two of them were arrested.

The police took inventory of 441 motorbikes at the whole of the accused persons and thereafter the promises were locked up with different padlock after we had signed the inventory document to ensure that was the true reflection of the stock so taken and the keys retained by the police. Surprisingly, the police later released the keys to the accused persons without recourse to management of the company.

When management had information about it and confronted the police, the accused persons at time had sold out more than half bikes.

The case in respect of the 441 motorbikes was reported to Regional CID, Sunyani. In the course of police investigation they retrieved only Twenty-one (21) motorbikes and some parts which were kept at Techiman police station.

After investigation and just as the police were preparing to send the accused persons to court, the petitioned the Regional office of the Attorney-General’s Department and the docket was called for. The docket was therefore given to Mr. Theophilus Appoh who advises on it.

One day I was at the store when Mr. Appoh came to tell me that, he was the person going to prosecute the case and that, he would conduct the prosecution at the High court at Wench and when I asked him why not in Sunyani since there are three High Courts in Sunyani instead of the Wenchi, he told me the Judge in Wenchi is his friend and for that matter the case will be given speedy trial over there.

He then took GH¢ 20,000.00 from me to go and see the Judge in this regard. He subsequently, took advantage of this and collected various sums of money from me GH¢ 50,000.00 which he claimed was going to share with His lordship Sarpong.

Some of these monies were sent to Mr. Appoh fiscal whilst some through MTN mobile money transfer which records I have including the telephone conversation in which he specifically mentioned the Judge as the person he was usually sharing the money with.

To my uttermost shock, the first day we appeared before the Wenchi High, the Judge gave the the accused persons self recognizance bail on the basis that their lawyer was not in court then adjourned the case to 29/06/2017.

On the said date, I was in court with my lawyer and when the case was called, the Judge said the police should go and do further investigation into the matter before he could hear me same. The Judge directed the accused persons lawyer how to make his bail application to enable him grant them the bail.

Eventually the Judge granted the accused persons bail in the sum of GH¢ 50,000.00 with one surety each without taking into consideration the amount involved in the case which is over GH¢ 1, 000,000.00.

Taking into account what is happening I strongly suspect something is happening between Mr. Theophilus Appoh, the accused persons and the Judge. In view of the above, I humble wish to petition your High office to respectfully take the case from him and re-assign same to a different Attorney since I have lost confidence in Mr. Theophilus Appoh.

I do not think he can fairy prosecute the matter. Secondly, he should take steps to refund all monies he received from me purported to have been given or share with Justice Sarpong. I am ready to appear before any investigation body in case he Mr. Theophilus Appoh denies having received such monies from me to prove him otherwise.

Hope this my humble petition will receive the attention it deserves, please Thank you.

Yours faithfully

………………………………. (KWADWO ADJEI)

Cc: THE PRINCIPAL STATE ATTORNEY ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPARTMENT, SUNYANI B/A