PAUL LARBIE AND 3 OTHERS vs. THE REPUBLIC [2018]DLCA4678

Date	2018-07-25
Suit No.	SUIT NO. H2/5/2018
Citation No.	[2018]DLCA4678

AYEBI J.A

ADJEI J.A

SUURBAAREH J.A

AKWASI OPOKU AGYEMANG ESQ. FOR THE APPELLANTS

MR. SETH AWERE-OPANYINYENA (SSA) FOR THE RESPONDENT

[2018]DLCA4678
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >PAUL LARBIE AND 3 OTHERS<o:p></o:p>(APPELLANTS)<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>THE REPUBLIC<o:p></o:p>(RESPONDENT)<o:p></o:p>[COURT OF APPEAL, ACCRA]<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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SUIT
NO. H2/5/2018&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; 25TH
JULY, 2018<o:p></o:p>

</div>COUNSEL:<o:p></o:p>AKWASI
OPOKU AGYEMANG ESQ. FOR THE APPELLANTS<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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</div>CORAM:<o:p></o:p>AYEBI
J.A, ADJEI J.A, SUURBAAREH J.A<o:p></o:p><div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border-top:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
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<p class="MsoNoSpacing" align="center" style="text-align:center;line-height:115%;
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solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0in;mso-padding-alt:1.0pt 0in 1.0pt 0in">JUDGMENT<o:p></o:p>

</div>ADJEI,
J.A:<o:p></o:p>The Appellants herein are accused
persons before the District Court, Adjabeng, Accra. The Appellants have been
charged for two counts of offences namely; conspiracy to commit murder contrary
to section 23 (1) of Act 29/60 and murder contrary to section 46 of Act 29/60.<o:p></o:p>The brief facts of the
case presented before the District Court were that the 1st Appellant
is a land guard and the 2nd, 3rd and 4th
Appellants are traders living at Oduman. On 14th October, 2016, the
1st Appellant accused the deceased, Baba Mahmoud for having stolen
his motor bike. The Appellants called the deceased on phone to meet them and
when he arrived at the scene, the Appellants attacked him with sticks and
assaulted him. The Appellants stripped the deceased naked and subjected him to
severe beatings. The Appellants further dragged the deceased to the nearby bush,
abandoned him and was subsequently found dead. The Appellants absconded and
were arrested from their hideout.<o:p></o:p>The District Court
remanded the Appellants at their first appearance in Court on 30th
November, 2016. On 11th January, 2017 the District Court refused to
grant the application for bail made by the&nbsp;&nbsp;
Appellants.<o:p></o:p>The Appellants on 31st
January, 2017 filed an application to the High Court for bail. The Appellants
in their&nbsp;&nbsp; repeat application to the High
Court for bail denied&nbsp; completely the
facts presented&nbsp; by the prosecution and
deposed&nbsp; that there are persons of
substance who have offered to stand as sureties for them . The High Court on 13th
April, 2017 refused the application for bail. The High Court in refusing the
application for bail held thus:<o:p></o:p>“I find in paragraph 11 of the
affidavit in opposition that the Applicants were arrested in their hideout by
the youth in the town of Oduman and handed over to the Police.<o:p></o:p>This, Counsel for the Applicant has
not disputed when asked if he had something to say in respect of the affidavit
in opposition.<o:p></o:p>In the circumstance, I am on the view
the Applicants are not likely to appear to stand for trial when released on
bail. I therefore refuse bail application with liberty to re-apply if trial is
unduly delayed”.<o:p></o:p>The legal effect of the
statement by the High Court Judge to the effect that the Applicants have
liberty to re-apply for bail if the trial is unduly delayed shall be discussed
in the course of the judgment.<o:p></o:p>The Appellants did not
appeal against the ruling of the High Court delivered on 13th April,
2017.<o:p></o:p>The Appellants subsequently
filed another application for bail before the High Court and which was resisted
by the prosecution. The High Court on 9th August, 2017 refused to
grant bail to the Appellants which was premised on the first application for
bail filed before the High Court. <o:p></o:p>The Appellants
subsequently applied to the Court of Appeal for leave to file an appeal out of
time against the refusal by the High Court to grant bail with respect to the
second application which was dismissed on 9th August, 2017.<o:p></o:p>The Appellants in their
notice of appeal filed on 24th January, 2018 pursuant to the leave
granted by the Court of Appeal stated three main grounds of appeal and they are
as follows:<o:p></o:p>“a.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The learned trial judge erred when he failed to hold that the
failure of the prosecution to bring accused persons to trial, more than a year
after their arrest and detention amounts to unreasonable delay, seeing as
prosecution claims to have eye witnesses to corroborate and strengthen their
case against the Accused-Appellants.<o:p></o:p>b.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; That the learned trial Judge erred in holding that the
Accused-Appellants, were arrested from their hideout by the youth of the Oduman
township when indeed they voluntarily handed themselves in at the Odorkor
Police Station.<o:p></o:p>c.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; That the leaned trial Judge erred when he failed to consider
the dicta of the Supreme Court regarding the grant of bail in offences such as
the ones accused have been charged with”.<o:p></o:p>On 6th June,
2018 when the appeal came on for heari</main>