[1971]DLHC2078 • April 7, 1971 • High Court
ANTWI AND ANOTHER vs. THE REPUBLIC
The appellants, employees in the Forestry Department, were charged with conspiracy to steal, forgery, and stealing. The first appellant, a forester responsible for office operations including salary vouchers, created a fictitious employee, Mr. E. K. Adu, to facilitate payment for typing work done by the second and third clerical assistants during understaffing. The fictitious employee's salary was partially paid to the clerical assistants, with the balance returned to the government chest. The third accused was acquitted as he was on leave and unaware of the scheme.
read moreIn this rather interesting case the two appellants were charged with another who was acquitted and discharged at the conclusion of the prosecution’s case with the three offences of conspiracy to steal, forgery and stealing. The first appellant is a forester in the Forestry Department of the Ministry of Agriculture, and the others are clerical assistants working under him at their office at Yendi. The first appellant had the responsibility of the general running of the office including the making of vouchers for the payment of salaries and wages. In June 1969 the office became understaffed. It had no typist but there was typing work which had to be done. The first appellant therefore arranged with the two clerical assistants to do the typing work in their leisure time. For their remuneration he conceived of and evolved a scheme whereby they could be paid for the work done. He decided to include the name of a fictitious person in the list of employees as a temporary typist and to pa.....