A 64 year old Retiree and member of the Akona Royal family of Ahanta Fretsi, in the Ahanta West Municipality, Kobina Obeng, has pleaded not guilty to two counts of forgery and possessing of forged documents, contrary to section 159 of the Criminal Offences Act (Act 29) of 1960 and section 166 of the criminal offences act 29 of 1960.
He has consequently been granted bail in the sum of GHC20,000.00 with two sureties to be justified.
The case has been adjourned to June 11, 2024 for Case Management Conference (CMC).
Presenting the facts of the case, Inspector Robert Yawson told the Takoradi Circuit Court, presided over her Lady Aba Nunoo that, the accused with intent to evade the law, forged the signature of late Nana Eben Ayeboafo VIII on a terms of settlement between the latter, as 1st Defendant and Nana Badu IV as Plaintiff, in a suit which was later adopted by a Sekondi High Court on the 20th of July 2007.
The Complainant in the case, the Prosecutor told the court, was David Anthony Nicol-Sey, an acting Head of family of Eben Ayeboafo stool of Akentechie and also Managing Director of Takoradi Gold Ghana.
The accused person, on the other hand, is a retiree and a member of the Akona Royal family of Fretsi and lives at Nkotompo, a suburb of Sekondi.
Prosecutor Yawson told the court that Nana Eben Ayeboafo, now deceased and maternal family member of the Complainant, ruled from 1980-2011 as the Divisional chief of Akentechie, under which Fretsi stool falls as an Odikro.
During the early days of her reign, the Complainant lived in the United Kingdom. In March 2014, the Akentechie Divisional stool elders after meetings, decided to settle on the Complainant to come down and act as the Ebusuapayin, of which he obliged.
Consequently, Complainant assumed the role as the Ebusuapayin, for the stool family of Akentechie and accordingly took over all properties including documents of the stool.
Over sometime, Complainant studied some of the documents and detected that Nana Ayeboafo signature has allegedly been forged on one of the documents captioned – “Terms of Settlement” – made between the accused person then acting as lawful Attorney of Nana Badu IV, chief of Fretsi and late Nana Eben Ayeboafo VIII.
The accused person is a signatory to the said terms of settlement.
On 16th October 2023, the “Terms of Settlement” document, containing the alleged forged signature, as well as the true likeness signature of Nana Eben Ayeboafo on different documents as exhibits, were sent to the Spotlight Security Solutions, Accra, for forensic analysis.
On 7th November, 2923 the Prosecutor told the Court that a report was received from Spotlights Security Solutions.
The report indicated that “It is highly probable” that Nana Eben Ayeboafo could not have authored the signature allegedly representing her on the said document.
Consequently, after investigations the accused was charged and arraigned.
The accused is represented in court by J.K.M. Asempa, an Attorney.
