The Accra Circuit Court has ordered the arrest of Alfred Nee Quartey Papafio, Ernestina Kwakor Quartey Papafio and Joseph Quartey-Papafio, all heads and lawful representatives of Papafio family at Santeo.
The court’s order follows their failure to appear before it on Wednesday, this week, to answer the charge of abetment to commit a crime, to wit, defrauding by false pretences.
The police have up to April 23, 2024 to execute the bench warrant issued by Mrs Suana Eduful, the presiding judge of the court.
Alfred, Ernestina and Joseph were alleged to have abetted David Abu Kantong, Managing Director of M.O.S Property Consultancy Limited to defraud lawyer Samuel Kojo Andrews in a land deal.
David Abu Kantong has pleaded not guilty to defrauding by false pretence and had been granted bail in the sum of GH¢500,000.00 to be justified by three sureties, earning not less than GH¢5,000 a month.
Brief facts
As contained in the brief facts, in the year 2015/16, David Abu Kantong, first accused person (A1) engaged Mr. Andrew, complainant, as counsel for his company, M.O.S. Property Consultancy Limited.
In the course of their working relationship, A1 offered to sell two plots of fenced land at Santeo to the complainant. The complainant expressed interest in the land and was taken to the site for inspection. Having satisfied himself with the location of the land, same was sold to him at US$35,000.
Full payment was made to A1 and he issued a receipt of payment to the complainant as acknowledgement of payment.
Few weeks later, he handed over to the complainant an indenture covering the land dated January 9, 2016 endorsed by Alfred, Ernestina and Joseph as Heads and Lawful Representatives of Papafio family.
Few years later, the complainant moved to the site to commence his building project on the land but was prevented by one Musah Shaibu who also laid claim to the same parcel of land.
Mr Andrews immediately notified A1 about his challenges on the land and requested for his assistance to resolve the matter.
David Abu Kantong insisted the land belonged to his company and as such did not have any record on the said Mush Shaibu.
The complainant whilst making attempts to settle the dispute on the land, also applied to Lands Commission, Accra to register the land in his name, but his application was also declined.
This development was brought to the attention of 1st accused by the complainant, but all efforts to seek his assistance in this regard yielded no result.
Sometime in the year 2020, the complainant visited the land and realised that the said Musah Shaibu had raised building structures on the land and all efforts to stop him proved futile.
He called A1 again, as his grantor to intervene, but he did nothing to help him. The 1st accused rather endorsed a new indenture covering the same piece of land to the complainant and left him to his fate.
On August 20, 2022, the complainant petitioned the Director General of CID, leading to the arrest of the accused persons.
During investigation, A1 claimed ownership of the disputed land through M.O.S Property Consultancy Limited and also admitted granting same to the complainant. He further mentioned the other accused persons as his grantors who endorsed the transaction.
Meanwhile, police investigation has established that the disputed land forms part of a large tract of land granted to A1’s late brother, Salifu Johnson by the Papafio family of Santeo.
It has also been established that the late Salifu Johnson had sub leased portions of his land including the disputed land to individual developers prior to his death.
A visit to the disputed land by the police also revealed that the said Musah Shaibu had constructed houses on the land.
An official search conducted on the disputed land at Lands Commission, Accra also indicated that the land is affected by land certificate No. GA. 23478 issued to Musah Shaibu. The accused persons were accordingly charged with the relevant offences and arraigned before the court.
