Court issues bench warrant for arrest of 2

 March 20, 2013 (Page 3 Lead)

The Accra Circuit Court Tuesday issued a bench warrant for the arrest of two persons — a chief and an administrator of the Lashibi Stool — for allegedly defrauding the Manager of Abundant Grace Academy to the tune of GH¢360,000.

Nii Agyemang II, the stool administrator, and Nii Assinu II of the Lashibi Stool in Accra were expected to appear before the court, presided over by Mrs Justice Patience Mills Tetteh, a High Court judge with additional responsibility as a Circuit Court judge, to answer conspiracy and defrauding by false pretence charges but they failed to do so.

A third accused person, Nii Kabu Akwatiah, the Mankralo of the Lashibi Stool, was present in court and was granted bail in the sum of GH¢400,000, with three sureties, to reappear on April 9, 2013.

Akwatiah had pleaded not guilty to two counts of conspiracy and defrauding by false pretence.

The three are alleged to have, in 2007, received GH¢360,000 from the complainant, Mr Charles Owusu Ansah, an educationist and manager of Abundant Grace Academy, after selling him 45 acres of land.

Mr Owusu-Ansah informed the court that he was currently paying interest of GH¢20,000 on a loan he took from the UT and the Barclays banks to purchase the land.

“The situation is so bad the two banks are after my school and my house. I have pursued the case for the past three years, all to no avail. All I need is my money back,” a distraught Mr Owusu-Ansah informed the court.

He said he intended to expand his school and, therefore, purchased the land from the accused persons but officials of the Tema Development Corporation (TDC) brought down the school’s signposts, on the grounds that the land belonged to the TDC.

Prosecuting, Chief Inspector Isaac Dedoo told the court that the complainant planned to expand his school some time in 2007 and, accordingly, approached the accused persons to purchase the said land.

According to the prosecution, the accused persons delegated their subordinates, who led Mr Owusu-Ansah to a site behind the Emefs Estate and showed him a stretch of land around Community 14.

After negotiations on the said parcel of land, the accused persons collected the GH¢360,000, both in cash and cheque, from Mr Owusu-Ansah and subsequently gave him a site plan for the 45 acres of land.

Mr Owusu-Ansah then proceeded to the Lands Commission to conduct a search on the land but he was informed that the land belonged to the TDC and that it was sub-leased to Regimanuel Gray Limited, a real estate company, in 1996.

The accused persons were subsequently charged with the offences after investigations.