THE REPUBLIC vs. DERICK ARMAH KWANTRENG, DAVID AGYEMFRA ALIAS OWURA, CHARLES LARTEY, MIKE EBEN @ OSU (AT LARGE)AND JAVI (AT LARGE) [2016]DLHC8550

THE REPUBLIC vs. DERICK ARMAH KWANTRENG, DAVID AGYEMFRA ALIAS OWURA, CHARLES LAR... [2016]DLHC8550

Date	2016-12-19
Suit No.	SUIT NO. ST 41/2009
Citation No.	[2016]DLHC8550

HIS LORDSHIP JUSTICE C. J. HONYENUGA JUSTICE OF APPEAL SITTING AS AN ADDITIONAL HIGH COURT JUDGE

MR. E. K. G. HAIZEL FOR THE RESPONDENT/ APPELLANT

MR. DIABA WITH HIM MRS. DIABA FOR THE PETITIONER/RESPONDENT

[2016]DLHC8550
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >THE REPUBLIC<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>DERICK ARMAH KWANTRENG, DAVID AGYEMFRA ALIAS OWURA, CHARLES LARTEY, MIKE
EBEN @ OSU (AT LARGE)AND JAVI (AT LARGE)<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</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:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">

SUIT
NO.&nbsp; ST 41/2009&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; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;DATE:
19TH DECEMBER, 2016<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:<o:p></o:p>MR.
E. K. G. HAIZEL FOR THE RESPONDENT/ APPELLANT<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
padding:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">

MR.
DIABA WITH HIM MRS. DIABA FOR THE PETITIONER/RESPONDENT<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:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">

HIS
LORDSHIP JUSTICE C. J. HONYENUGA, JUSTICE OF APPEAL 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:0cm 0cm 1.0pt 0cm">

</div>On
the 16th day of July 2008, the Honourable Lady Chief Justice of the
Republic of Ghana appointed me to sit as an Additional High Court Judge to deal
with this case.&nbsp; This case is about one
of the largest haul of cocaine arrested in Ghana.&nbsp; According to the Director of testing Division
of the Ghana Standards Board, the cocaine weighed 416.2236 kilograms.&nbsp; Its street value in Accra was stated as Nine
Million and forty thousand United States Dollars (US$9,040,000.00) but it could
have cost Two Hundred and Seventy one Million, One Hundred and twenty thousand
United States Dollars (US$271,120.000.00) in the United States of America.&nbsp; All these point to the growing menace of
drugs infiltrating into our society.&nbsp;
This therefore called for serious vigilance from all stakeholders.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>The
accused persons in this case were <o:p></o:p>1. Samel Agoe Mills Robertson&nbsp; <o:p></o:p>2. Derrick Armah Kwantreng<o:p></o:p>3. David Agyemfra alias Chuku Owura<o:p></o:p>4. Charles Lartey <o:p></o:p>5. Mike Eben alias Osu (At Large)<o:p></o:p>6. Javi (At Large)<o:p></o:p>The
first, second, third, fifth and sixth accused persons were charged with
Conspiracy to possess narcotic drugs without lawful authority contrary to
sections 23(1) of Act 29, 1960 and section 2(1) of PNDCL 236 and Possession of
Narcotic Drug without lawful authority, contrary to section 2(1) of the
Narcotics Drug (Control, Enforcement and Sanctions) Law 1990, PNDCL 236.&nbsp; The fourth accused Charles Lartey was charged
only with Attempt to corrupt a public officer contrary to sections 18(2) and
239(2) of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960, Act 29 for attempting to corrupt
Police Officers with $6,000.00 and CFA 220,000.00.<o:p></o:p><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p>The
facts of the case were that the 1st, 2nd, 3rd,
4th and the 5th accused persons are Ghanaians.&nbsp; The other accused person is a South American
of Columbian nationality.&nbsp; On the 29th
of June, 2008, the 2nd accused sought the 1st accused to
carry cocaine from Asankragua in the Western Region to Accra for a fee of Forty
thousand Dollars ($40,000,00) and he agreed.&nbsp;
As a result, the 1st accused recruited the 3rd and
the 5th accused persons as the escorts for the drug haul
expedition.&nbsp; On the same date, the 1st
accused used his private Toyota Saloon car with registration number GW 31 Z and
conveyed the 5th accused to Asankragua where they met the 2nd
accused and the 5th accused who is at large at Melody Hotel.&nbsp; The 2nd accused then handed over
his private Toyota ForeRunner vehicle with registration number GR 1204 Y and
this was loaded with nineteen (19) travelling bags each containing 20 slabs
totaling 380 slabs of suspected cocaine to the 1st accused and his
escorts.&nbsp; The 3rd and the 5th
accused persons who took over his 1st accused peson’s saloon
car.&nbsp; The 1st accused drove
the consignment to Takoradi with the 3rd and 5th accused
persons on board.&nbsp; They stayed overnight
and continued the following morning; that is 28th June, 2008.&nbsp; About 8 O’clock on the same day, the 1st,
3rd and 5th accused persons were intercepted at the
Ataabadzie Junction on the Cape Coast highway by Police Officers of the Cape
Coast Regional MTTU.&nbsp; The 1st
accused was arrested while the 3rd and 5th accused
managed to run into the bush.&nbsp; A search
was conducted on the vehicle and it revealed that 19 traveling bags each
containing 20 slabs all totaling 380 sl</main>