<p class="mb-5" id="contentDlCitation" hidden>[1968]DLHC10787</p> <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" ><span style="font-size: 18px !important;"><p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;color:#00B0F0">ILLIASU AND ANOTHER <o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;color:#00B0F0">vs.<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;color:#00B0F0">THE REPUBLIC <o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif">[<span class="NoSpacingChar">HIGH COURT</span>, ACCRA]<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><div style="border-top: none; border-right: none; border-left: none; border-image: initial; border-bottom-width: 1.5pt; border-bottom-color: windowtext; padding: 0in 0in 1pt;"> <p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height:115%;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><b><span style="font-size:10.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif">[1968] GLR 742-748 DATE: 31<sup>ST</sup> JULY, 1968<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> </div><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height:115%"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif">COUNSEL:<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height:115%"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif">DR. DE GRAFT-JOHNSON FOR THE APPELLANT.</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman""><o:p></o:p></span></p><div style="border-top: none; border-right: none; border-left: none; border-image: initial; border-bottom-width: 1.5pt; border-bottom-color: windowtext; padding: 0in 0in 1pt;"> <p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height:115%;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif">G. E. K. AIKINS, STATE ATTORNEY FOR THE RESPONDENT.</span><span style="font-size: 12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif;mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman""><o:p></o:p></span></p> </div><p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height:115%"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif; mso-fareast-font-family:"Book Antiqua";mso-bidi-font-family:"Book Antiqua"">CORAM:<o:p></o:p></span></b></p><div style="border-top: none; border-right: none; border-left: none; border-image: initial; border-bottom-width: 1.5pt; border-bottom-color: windowtext; padding: 0in 0in 1pt;"> <p class="MsoNoSpacing" style="line-height:115%;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt: solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><span class="NoSpacingChar"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif">EDUSEI J.</span></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt; line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif"><o:p></o:p></span></p> </div><p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height: 115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif"> </span></b></p><div style="border-top: none; border-right: none; border-left: none; border-image: initial; border-bottom-width: 1.5pt; border-bottom-color: windowtext; padding: 0in 0in 1pt;"> <p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%; border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in; mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:"Book Antiqua",serif">JUDGMENT<o:p></o:p></span></b></p> </div><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 115%; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">The first appellant was on 2 October 1967 convicted by the Circuit Court, Accra, of the offence of extorting money in the sum of N¢400.00 from one Amina Dagomba by means of threats, contrary to section 151 (1) of the Criminal Code, 1960 (Act 29), and was sentenced to three years' imprisonment with hard labour. The second appellant who was a defence witness at the trial of the first appellant was, after the conviction of the first appellant, also convicted of perjury and sentenced to three months' imprisonment with hard labour.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 115%; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">I shall proceed to deal with the case of the second appellant. It is beyond doubt that the circuit judge in convicting the second appellant for perjury was exercising his summary powers under section 152 of the Criminal Procedure Code, 1960 (Act 30). The learned state attorney at first attempted to support the conviction of this appellant and after addressing his mind to the evidence and the authorities like Commissioner of Police v. Wood (1956) 1 W.A.L.R. 71, W.A.C.A.; .R. v. Mensah and Abutakyi (1956) 2 W.A.L.R. 129, W.A.C.A. and R. v. Otubu (1943) 9 W.A.C.A. 20 he capitulated and confessed his inability to support the conviction of the second appellant.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 115%; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">It would also appear from the proceedings that the trial court did not believe the answer the appellant gave. The trial court informed the appellant that "it could not be true that the second prosecution witness had threatened him not to give evidence as it is clear that he had already proffered to give evidence before his name was mentioned in court." The appellant answered that "I came to court because of what the second prosecution witness told me." He was in effect saying that it was true that the second prosecution witness threatened him not to give evidence and it was because of that, that he came to court to give evidence. It has been held in Kwame v. The State [1964] G.L. R. 612 at p. 615, S.C. that:</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 115%; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">"The fact that a court does not believe a witness on any particular issue and rejects the evidence of that witness is no proof that what the witness said on the issue is false, and that it is within the knowledge of the witness that what he deposed to is false. If that were so, it would mean that every party who loses a civil or criminal case on facts, and his witness, would be guilty of perjury."</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 115%; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">The second appellant's appeal is allowed; he is acquitted and discharged. I now turn my attention to the case of the first appellant who was convicted of extorting N¢400.00 by means of threats. The learned state attorney was called upon to support the conviction. He conceded that at the time the money passed from the second prosecution witness, Amina Dagomba, the threat had ceased to operate on her mind. The prosecution story is simply that the appellant and Amina Dagomba (hereinafter referred to as the complainant) knew each other for some time, and that the appellant had been receiving financial assistance from the complainant from time to time. The complainant testified that the appellant had informed her that the Political Committee of the National Liberation Council had received a complaint about her activities at Yendi and that the Special Branch would contact her. She was in fact arrested by the Special Branch who took a statement from her about her activities in the north of Ghana. The appellant later visited the complainant and told her of the seriousness of the allegations against her adding that the warrant for her arrest had been signed by Mr. Deku, Commissioner of Police (C. I.D.). The complainant burst into tears, and the appellant asked her to get ready £G300 or £G400 to be given to Mr. Deku because he, the appellant, had seen Mr. Deku. The complainant said she had no money. In the meantime the complainant who had been granted bail was reporting to the Special Branch until she was finally asked to report no more.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 115%; background-image: initial; background-position: initial; background-size: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">On the same day that she was asked not to report to the Special Branch, the appellant came to her and asked for the money for Mr. Deku otherwise she would be placed in protective custody within two or three days from that day. The appellant asked the complainant to listen in to the news at 6 p.m. that day and she would hear the names of persons to be placed in protective custody. The complainant could not understand the conduct of the appellant because it was the Special Branch that granted her bail and if they wanted her they could send for her. She therefore decided</main>
