MANTEY AND ANOTHER vs. THE STATE [1965]DLHC1827

Date	1965-04-08
Suit No.
Citation No.	[1965]DLHC1827

ARCHER J.

I. AMOO-LAMPTEY FOR THE FIRST APPELLANT.

MISS ASABEA AYISI FOR THE SECOND APPELLANT.

V. E. A. KISSEIH STATE ATTORNEY FOR THE STATE.

[1965]DLHC1827
																																						<div class="restriction-wrapper">
														<div class="container-lg">
															<div class="row">
																<div class="col-md-12 restricted-content">
																	<div class="restricted-content-img-wrapper">
																		<div class="lock-icon bounce-7">
																			<img class=""
																				src="https://www.dennislawgh.com/dl-assets/dl-images/lock-content.png"
																				alt="Subscription based content">
																		</div>
																	</div>
																	 
																		<a href="https://www.dennislawgh.com/login"
																		class="btn btn-primary btn-lg"
																		style="font-family: 'open sans'; text-transform: capitalize; border-radius: 8px"> 
																		Login to Read Full Case </a>
																	 
																	
																</div>
															</div>
														</div>
													</div>
													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >MANTEY AND ANOTHER<o:p></o:p>&nbsp;vs. <o:p></o:p>THE STATE <o:p></o:p>[HIGH COURT, ACCRA]<o:p></o:p>[1965] GLR 229<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">

DATE:
8 APRIL 1965.<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:&nbsp;&nbsp; <o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 0in 0in">

I. AMOO-LAMPTEY FOR THE FIRST APPELLANT.<o:p></o:p>

MISS ASABEA AYISI FOR THE SECOND APPELLANT.<o:p></o:p>

V. E. A. KISSEIH, STATE ATTORNEY, FOR THE STATE.<o:p></o:p>

</div>CORAM:
<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 0in 0in">

ARCHER J.<o:p></o:p>

</div><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>JUDGMENT OF ARCHER J.<o:p></o:p>The first
appellant, Emmanuel Essiam Mantey, was convicted at a district magistrate’s
court sitting at Accra on a charge of stealing one West African Examinations
Council map for the Joint School Certificate Examinations and General
Certificate of Education 1964 valued at three pence being the property of the
West African Examinations Council, Accra. He was sentenced to one day’s
imprisonment and fined £G25 or three months’ imprisonment with hard labour in
default. He, was also required to execute a bond in the sum of £G200 with one
surety to be justified to be of good behaviour for twelve months in default.
The second appellant Isaac Costello Dei, was convicted at the same court on two
counts, namely, aiding and abetting the first appellant in stealing the said
map valued three pence and secondly dishonestly receiving the said map from the
first appellant.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>Both
appellants have appealed against their convictions. It was argued on behalf of
the first appellant that the learned magistrate was wrong in law in convicting
the first appellant on the evidence of the second appellant which is contained
in a statement he made to the police - exhibit A. The whole judgment with its
remarkable qualities of conciseness and brevity bereft of any details and super
- fluities is as follows:<o:p></o:p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-top:0in;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:5.0pt;
margin-left:.5in;text-align:justify;mso-pagination:none;border:none;mso-padding-alt:
31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt 31.0pt;mso-border-shadow:yes">“On the
evidence I am satisfied the guilt of each of the accused has been proved to the
hilt. I do not believe the second accused from his demeanour in the box. From
the said demeanour I accept as true rather the content of his statement exhibit
A which taking the case as a whole shows the picture. I find as a fact that the
accused approached the first accused for a map to be sent to the fourth
prosecution witness at Winneba. I therefore find the first accused guilty on
the first count and the second accused also guilty on counts 2 and 3 and I
convict them accordingly.”<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>The
learned counsel for the first appellant has impeached this judgment and has
relied on the case of Danso v. R.1 which reiterated the principle of criminal
evidence that a cautioned statement by a second appellant implicating the first
appellant was not in law evidence against the first appellant. It was also
submitted on the strength of Egbe v. R.2 that as the evidence for the
prosecution showed inconsistencies and conflicts the learned magistrate should
have clearly and in detail stated the considerations which affected his mind
and the reasons for his judgment; and then finally reliance was placed on the
now popular cases of R. v. Ansere3 and R. v. Abisa Grunshie4 which establish
that a court is not entitled to reject a defence simply because it does not
believe it. The court must consider, short of believing a defence, whether or
not it may reasonably be true.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>In reply
the learned state attorney argued that there was evidence to support the
conviction of the first appellant after consideration of the whole evidence on
the authority of R. v. Abisa Grunshie (supra). I have had the opportunity of
reading and re-reading the whole evidence and it seems to me that there are inconsistencies
and conflicts which should have compelled the learned magistrate to state in
detail why he thought the charge of stealing preferred against the first
appellant had been proved to the hilt, to use his own words.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>The chief
lithographer, the first prosecution witness, received the order to print the
maps in August 1963. He printed and despatched them to the customer, i.e. the
West African Examinations Council, although the date of despatch was not given
in evidence. According to the first prosecution witness damaged sheets are cut
in parts and destroyed. He identified exhibit C the alleged stolen map as a
damaged sheet. He also stated that he made several maps for several purposes
such as for schools examin</main>