Kofi Ampeah Woode
Four persons – James Okine (an estates developer), Abubakar Issah (unemployed), Kamach Yeboah and Ali Amadu (heavy equipment operators) – have been handed a Court bail the sum totaling GHS250,000 with 8 sureties, on Police charges of conspiracy to commit crime and unlawful protection of land.
An Accra Circuit Court presided over by Mr Samuel Bright Acquah slapped the quartet with the bail amount and a total of eight sureties – James Okine’s bail bond was GH¢100,000, with two sureties who should be Public Servants earning not less than GH¢2,000 monthly salaries, whiles the rest had bails of GH¢50,000 with two sureties each – on Tuesday January 17, 2023, where they all pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Okine, the first-accused (A1), had his plea taken on Tuesday January 17, 2023, since he could not attend Court on the first day the case was called on January 6, 2023, where the presiding judge was informed that A1 was under the weather; thus, before remanding the others into police custody, ordered that A1 be brought before the Court on the next adjourned date – Tuesday January 17, 2023 – after which the Court adjourned for the next hearing on February 6, 2023.
The Court was informed by Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Maxwell Oppong that the complainant, one Godrich Ardey, a businessman who resides at Katamanso, in the jurisdiction of the Court, reported to the police on January 3, 2023 that his family’s land of 1.625.474 acres at Katamanso, covered by a Land Title Certificate, was being encroached upon.
Mr Godrich Ardey informed the Police that the first accused, who also is the owner of Greenlake Estates had entered his family land, recruited land guards to protect him and his workers, while they were unlawfully grading the land to commence development.
The police, who said the complainant showed land title certificate and a Power of Attorney from his family to back his claims, informed the Court that the complainant’s family had also leased portions of the land to some estate companies who have built estate houses on portions of the land without any challenges.
To verify the documents submitted by the accused, he said police investigation has revealed that the complainant’s family has possessed the land for several decades.
The prosecutor told the Court that on January 5, 2023, the police visited the scene with the complainant and found Kamack and Amadu using a pay loader machine to grade the complainant’s family land under the protection of Abubakar Issah, one Stephen Okutu Kofi (alias Kofi Santos) and Benjamin Djanker (alias Asaa), who should be standing trial with the accused persons, but are at large.
He stated that Kamack and Amadu were arrested and during investigation, Okine followed up and was also arrested for investigation. On the count of this they were charged and put before Court, while efforts are being made to arrest the two other accused persons.
James Okine, Issah, Kamack Yeboah, and Ali Amadu are residents of Zenu-Ashaiman, Teiman and Oyibi respectively.
