ABDULAI LADJO MANE (PLAINTIFF) vs. DIRECTOR OF NARCOTICS CONTROL BOARD AND ATTORNEY GENERAL (DEFENDANTS) [2008]DLHC7068

ABDULAI LADJO MANE (PLAINTIFF) vs. DIRECTOR OF NARCOTICS CONTROL BOARD AND ATTOR... [2008]DLHC7068

Date	2008-10-14
Suit No.	SUIT NO. BC.245/2005
Citation No.	[2008]DLHC7068

HIS LORDSHIP MR. E. K. AYEBI J. A. SITTING AS AN ADDITIONAL HIGH COURT JUDGE

ADJEI LARTEY FOR PLAINTIFF

[2008]DLHC7068
																																						<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" >ABDULAI
LADJO MANE<o:p></o:p>(PLAINTIFF)<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>DIRECTOR OF NARCOTICS CONTROL BOARD AND ATTORNEY GENERAL<span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size:12.0pt;line-height:115%;font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;,&quot;serif&quot;;
mso-fareast-font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;;mso-bidi-font-family:&quot;Book Antiqua&quot;;
color:#00B0F0"><o:p></o:p>(DEFENDANTS)<o:p></o:p>[HIGH COURT,
ACCRA]<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">

<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
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">SUIT NO. BC.245/2005 &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;DATE: 14TH OCTOBER, 2008<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:<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">

<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom:0in;margin-bottom:.0001pt;text-align:
justify;line-height:115%;border:none;mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">ADJEI LARTEY FOR PLAINTIFF <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 1.0pt 0in">

HIS LORDSHIP MR. E. K. AYEBI J. A.
SITTING AS AN ADDITIONAL HIGH COURT JUDGE<o:p></o:p>

</div><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">

</div>The
plaintiff has two claims against the defendants. <o:p></o:p>They
are (1) an order directed at the 1st defendant to release the sum of US
$12000.00 and one Nokia 72/i phone seized to the plaintiff and (2) damages for
unlawful arrest. <o:p></o:p>Plaintiff
says he is a Guinea - Bissau national and holds that passport. On 12/01/05,
plaintiff arrived at Kotoka International Airport aboard a South African
Airline. He said he was in transit to Bamako, Mali. Whiles going through
departure formalities, the officers of 1st defendant arrested him on suspicion
that he was a Nigerian and was in possession of narcotic drugs. <o:p></o:p>His
language was searched but nothing was found. His body was also searched. Again
nothing was found. He was taken through x-ray examination at the 37 Military
Hospital but nothing was revealed. 1st defendant's officers then seized his US
$12000.00 and Nokia phone before he was detained at the Cantonments Police
Station for 10 days. This is the basis of plaintiff's claim against the
defendants. <o:p></o:p>The
plaintiff told the court that he is a trader in unisex wears which he buys from
Sao Paulo in Brazil and sells in South Africa. The US $12,000.00 was realised
from the said trade. He denied he is a drug courier. But 1st defendant's
officers say that a week earlier, they had intelligence report that Hotel
Topalio in Sao Paulo, Brazil where West African drug couriers lodged had been
raided by Brazilian Police. The said couriers were on the run. So they set out
to look out for passengers whose travel itinerary agreed with the information.
They do this by checking the passengers air ticket and passport. <o:p></o:p>It
is the case of the 1st defendant's witness that they stopped the plaintiff
after he had gone through immigration and custom checks and was on his way out
of the airport. Plaintiff's passport showed that he travelled from Brazil and
so he was arrested on suspicion that he was one of the drug couriers.
Investigations and search showed that the plaintiff had a return air ticket
from Accra back to South Africa which he hid under his luggage. That shows that
plaintiff was not in transit to Guinea Bissau. An amount of $6000.00 was found
hidden underneath the lining of each pair of his camboo shoes. He failed to
declare this money and said he hid it for security reasons. Although the
plaintiff asserted that he knew nobody in Ghana, a notebook with telephone
numbers of Ghanaian names was found in his bag. <o:p></o:p>The
defendant also established during cross-examination of the plaintiff that his
visa expired whiles in Brazil. Again the 1st defendant maintained that there
was no record from South Africa that plaintiff entered that country and so the
stamps found in plaintiff's passport were fraudulent. <o:p></o:p>It
is on the basis of these findings that the 1st defendant seized the plaintiff's
$12000.00 as a proceed from drug trafficking. Let me say that except for the
air ticket, the pair of camboo shoes and two black polythene bags in which the
plaintiff is alleged to have wrapped the dollars, the passport and the money
were not tendered. The court cannot therefore determine the information in the
passport. What I determine in this case is whether or not the arrest, detention
of plaintiff and seizure of his money and nokia phone was lawful. <o:p></o:p>It
is provided in section 10 (f) Act 29/60 that a police officer may without a
warrant arrest any person whom he suspects upon reasonable grounds to have
committed an offence outside Ghana, which offence is also punishable under any
enactment in Ghana. Drug trafficking is an offence punishable under the
Narcotic Drugs (Control, Enforcement and Sanctions) Law, 1990 (PNDCL. 236). And
it is provided specifically in section 23 of that law that a police officer may
arrest without a warrant any person he reasonably suspects to have committed or
to be committing an offence under the law. <o:p></o:p>Plaintiff
admitted he was in Sao Panlo and lodged in Hotel de Tapalio</main>