Ekow Micah faces court today: May get 5-year jail over 'ganja'

Popular reggae musician and President of the Music Council of Ghana, Ekow Micah, will this morning be dragged before a court in Accra to stand trial after police found in his possession some dried leaves suspected to be marijuana.

The musician, well known for his hit song, ‘Me Si Wu Hemaa’, was reported to have told the police that he smokes the supposed dried leaves in order to stimulate his music career.

He was charged with unlawful possession of narcotics and arraigned before court, where he was remanded for two weeks and asked to be brought to court today for the trial to begin.

The 43-year-old musician has pleaded not guilty to the charge. Highly respected legal practitioner, Adusei Poku, has expressed his legal opinion on the case and stated that if found guilty of the offence, Ekow Micah might serve up to a five-year jail term with hard labour.

“Mr Micah has been charged with a narcotics-related offence but the offence is in respect of possession, it is different from when you are exporting it that carries a different sentence in law and it is normally seen as non-bailable.

For smoking or possession in your room for use which has been detected, that is bailable and the maximum sentence is five years,” Mr Adusei Poku told Hitz FM.

Ekow Micah was originally arrested on August 4 over an alleged extortion and blackmail case currently under investigation by the Airport Police.

A day after that incidence, the police conducted a search at his residence at Ogbojo, near Kokrobite within the outskirts of Accra, and during the search, suspected narcotics substance was found in his custody.

The dreadlocks-wearing musician is obviously in double trouble, as he is also likely to be sent to another court this week on charges of conspiracy to extort.

A police source disclosed that Ekow is helping the Airport Police in ongoing investigations into a blackmail and extortion complaint filed by Asamoah Gyan’s manager against Osarfo Anthony- a journalist alleged to have demanded an amount of GH¢25,000 from the Gyan camp and threatened to put out some negative stories against the footballer if the money was not paid him.

“We have some evidence which suggests that Ekow Micah conspired with Osarfo Anthony and others and he has some serious explanations to do. Police is likely to send him to court this week,” a source at the station told NEWS-ONE.

Two other accomplices, Sarah Kwabla and another journalist by name Chris, were also invited by the police to help with ongoing investigations into the same matter.

The extortion process was also secretly recorded on video the night Osarfo Anthony received the cash from Asamoah Gyan’s manager, Samuel Anim Addo.

The Music Council of Ghana (MCG) and the Musicians Union of Ghana (MUSIGA) are yet to comment on the development, though Ekow is president of the former and a member of the latter.