Gbetsile Circuit Court grants a clergyman bail

The Gbetsile Circuit Court has granted bail to a clergyman, Jehoshaphat Awuni Azure, in the sum of Gh₵50,000.00 with two sureties for unlawfully causing damage to a burglarproof window and some electrical installations, all totalling Gh₵6,492.00.

The case was referred for an Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) and adjourned to December 6, 2023.

The court, presided over by Mrs Eleanor Kakra Banes Botchway, granted bail after the accused had pleaded not guilty to the charges levelled against him. 

Inspector Gloria Karikari, prosecuting, said the complainant, Helena Asamani, 42-years-old, was a pupil teacher at Mataheko, while the accused, Jehoshaphat Awuni Azure, 45-years-old, is a clergyman and resides at Afienya.

The inspector said Asamani rented one of her three-bedroom houses to the accused for a period of eight months and in the process, the complainant observed certain strange attitudes of Azure towards claiming ownership of her house.

Prosecutor Karikari said on October 28, 2023, the complainant called the accused to know his preparations in respect of the order given, only to be told that the accused left the house on October 22, 2023, but did not hand over the keys.

The prosecution said the complainant anxiously rushed to the said house the same day and detected that her burglarproof window was removed, her main switchboard was damaged and most of her electrical sockets and wires were destroyed and left on the floor.

The case was reported to the Afienya District Police Headquarters and the investigations revealed that the accused person had earlier agreed to fix everything and gave a statement to that effect, but later changed his mind, claiming he had no hand in the damages.

The accused was then charged with the offences and put before court.