Assembly-man, businesswoman on bail for causing damage
By Helena Selby
The Assembly man for Oyarifa-Teiman Electoral Area is standing trial at an Accra Circuit Court for allegedly damaging the property of Rex Africa Limited.
The accused person, John Okpoti Mensah, who is also an accountant, allegedly acted together with a businesswoman, Kpene Aku-Sika to damage the fence wall of the said company, which is worth GH¢26, 500.
Despite the permit given by the Ga East Municipal Assembly-Abokobi, the two accused persons led some group of people to attack workers on the site and subsequently pulled down the fence wall for the second time in order for them to get access to the land.
They were arrested on the building site, when they were in the process of putting up their own building.
Both accused persons pleaded not guilty to the charges of conspiracy to commit crime contrary to section 23 (1) of Act 29/60, causing unlawful damage contrary to section 172 (1) of Act 29/60 and trespass contrary to section 157 of Act 29/60, when they appeared before the court, presided over by Mrs. Patience Mills-Tetteh.
They have been admitted to bail in the sum of GH¢40, 000 with two sureties each, and are expected to re- appear on October 18, 2012.
The Prosecutor, Chief Inspector Charles Chester, narrating the facts of the case to the court stated that on August 29, 2012, both accused persons pulled down the wall which the complainant had already started putting up.
He said the complainant again began constructing the wall again, but on September 1, 2012, the first accused person led a group of people to attack the workers, took their tools, building materials and their monies away.
The prosecutor told the court that the accused persons conspired and pulled down the fence wall to begin putting up single rooms at separate places on the land.
“On September 3, 2012, the complainant lodged an official complaint to the police. The accused persons were arrested at the site constructing their rooms”, the prosecutor told the court.
Chief Inspector Chester told the court that on September 4, 2012, both parties were before the District Police Commander Adenta and upon interrogation, the first accused person denied his involvement in the attack on the complainant’s workers and demolishing of the fence wall.
The prosecutor further mentioned that, the first accused person had indicated that he heard the workers fighting with some people from Oyarifa at the site and that he only went to separate them.
“The first accused person was advised to help the police identify these people and also stop working on the site but the both of them disregarded the orders and continued to construct their single rooms roofed and painted them”, the court heard.
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