Former Minister of Sanitation, Cecilia Dapaah
The High Court in Accra has been forced to adjourn the case in which two housemaids of former Sanitation Minister Cecilia Abena Dapaah and five others are standing trial for stealing.
This was because, both the defense lawyers and State Prosecutors were late to Court when the case was called.
With the accused persons present, both sets of lawyers – Defence and Prosecution were absent but only arrived when Justice Marie-Louise Simmons had adjourned the case to March 8, 2024.
EIB Network Legal Affairs Correspondent, Murtala Inusah is reporting that the accused persons who were earlier granted bail are still in lawful custody as their conditions have not been met.
The Court is expected to Conduct a Case Management Conference at the next Court sitting while the accused persons make their fourth appearance at the High Court.
Patience Botwe, 18, and Sarah Agyei, 30, together with five others have been charged with some 31 counts for their respective roles in the alleged offence.
Justice Marie-Louise Simmons, had on December 13, last year, granted State Prosecutors one last opportunity to file their disclosures and witness statements before today’s Court session.
The rest are – Benjamin Sowah, Malik Dauda, Christiana Achab, Job Pomary and Yahaya Sumaila have pleaded not guilty to the various charges pressed against them – ranging from Conspiracy to steal, stealing, dishonestly receiving, and money laundering.
On Tuesday, January 16, 2024, Prosecutions led by Akosua Agyepomaa Agyemang, an Assistant State Attorney, said they filed part of their disclosures.
Background
On November 10, the two former House maids of Ex-Sanitation Minister Cecilia Abena Dapaah, Patience Botwe, and Sarah Agyei together with five others were granted bail in a combined sum of GHc5,250,000 with two sureties each to be justified with landed properties.
Botwe, 18, and the other accused persons have all pleaded not guilty to 31 counts when they made their first appearance at the High Court on November 10.
As part of their bail conditions, the Court said one of the sureties each must be a resident in the Greater Accra Region and “should be gainfully employed.”
Justice Marie-Louise Simmons, the trial judge presiding over the Criminal Court ‘2’ of the High Court in Accra, also said, “The resident of the sureties and accused must be inspected and known to the case Investigator who is required to look for them when they run away.”
Justice Simmons also directed that each sureties is to provide a copy of their Ghana Card to the Registrar whilst the Police Investigator is to take photographs of all the accused persons portraying their facials and make three copies.
Justice Simmons said, each of the copies should be placed on the bail bond on the Registrar’s documents, the court files, and a copy retained by the Police.
The Court also said the Registrar is to forward a copy of the bail bond to the court while the cost of taking the pictures should be borne by the sureties.
Botwe, 18, and Agyei, 30, together with Benjamin Sowah, Malik Dauda, Christiana Achab, Job Pomary, and Yahaya Sumaila have all denied the various charges pressed against them – ranging from Conspiracy to steal, stealing, dishonestly receiving, and money laundering.
They are before the Court in connection with the stolen funds and some properties worth millions of Ghana cedis.
On Friday, November 10, 2023, Justice Simmons had then directed the Prosecution led by Akosua Agyepomaa Agyemang, an Assistant State Attorney, to file disclosures and witness statements and have same served on the accused and their lawyers by December 8.
The accused persons are represented by lawyers Augustine Gyemfi, Yaw Dankwah, and Adams Abdul Basit.
According to EIB Network’s Legal Affairs Correspondent, Daniel Osei Kuffuor, the husband of Madam Cecilia Dapaah, one of the Complainants was present in Court.
New charges
On November 8, a charge sheet was filed at the High Court which proffered some 31 counts, eight more than the 14 that were on the amended charge sheet which was withdrawn on Wednesday, November 8, at the Circuit Court.
The 31 new counts comprised five counts of conspiracy, six counts of stealing, nine counts of dishonestly receiving, and 11 counts of money laundering.
Patience Botwe, 18, and seven others have been charged for allegedly stealing various money including $1 million, 300, 000 euros, and other properties.
They were since July 6, this year, put before the Circuit Court but that has been withdrawn and fresh charges proferred against them at the High court.
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