DR. RAZ HOCHMAN vs. KOKRANS MINING COMPANY LTD, NANA KORANKYE ADADE &RANSFORD AKROFI MENSAH [2022]DLHC11725

DR. RAZ HOCHMAN vs. KOKRANS MINING COMPANY LTD, NANA KORANKYE ADADE &RANSFORD A... [2022]DLHC11725

Date	2022-07-13
Suit No.	SUIT NO: GJ/608/2019
Citation No.	[2022]DLHC11725

HIS LORDSHIP JUSTICE KWEKU T. ACKAAH-BOAFO

CHARLES HABIAH FOR THE PLAINTIFF - PRESENT

JOSEPH TURKSON FOR THE 1ST AND 2ND DEFENDANTS – PRESENT

[2022]DLHC11725
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													<main id="main" class="content" style="min-height: 60rem" >DR. RAZ HOCHMAN<o:p></o:p>(PLAINTIFF)<o:p></o:p>vs.<o:p></o:p>KOKRANS MINING COMPANY LTD, NANA KORANKYE ADADE &amp;RANSFORD
AKROFI MENSAH<o:p></o:p>(DEFENDANTS)<o:p></o:p>[HIGH COURT, ACCRA]<o:p></o: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: 0cm 0cm 1pt;">

</div>COUNSEL&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <o:p></o:p>CHARLES
HABIAH FOR THE PLAINTIFF - PRESENT<o:p></o: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: 0cm 0cm 1pt;">

JOSEPH TURKSON FOR THE 1ST AND 2ND
DEFENDANTS – PRESENT<o:p></o:p>

</div>CORAM<o:p></o:p>HIS
LORDSHIP JUSTICE KWEKU T. ACKAAH-BOAFO<o:p></o:p><div style="border-top-width: 1.5pt; border-top-color: windowtext; border-left: none; border-bottom-width: 1.5pt; border-bottom-color: windowtext; border-right: none; padding: 1pt 0cm 0cm;">

<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="margin-bottom:0cm;margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center;border:none;mso-border-top-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;
mso-border-bottom-alt:solid windowtext 1.5pt;padding:0cm;mso-padding-alt:1.0pt 0cm 0cm 0cm">JUDGMENT<o:p></o:p>

</div>&nbsp;i.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Introduction:&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <o:p></o:p>[1]&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The Plaintiff, Dr. Raz Hochman
is an Israeli businessman who says he is interested in doing business in Ghana.
The 1st Defendant is an incorporated Company registered under the laws of Ghana
in the business of mining and trading in gold. The 2nd Defendant is the
Sanaahene of Odau Traditional Area, Etwereso Division of Akyem Obuakwa
Traditional Area in the Eastern Region of Ghana. The 3rd Defendant according to
the Plaintiff is said to be a director and a senior management staff of the 1st
Defendant Company, even though the evidence does not support that. This is an
action for the recovery of money the Plaintiff claims to have paid for the sale
of gold but was not delivered to him. The Plaintiff also seeks interest on the
money paid and special and general damages for losses incurred for
“inconvenience suffered from deception and fraud”. The 1st and 2nd Defendants
totally deny the Plaintiff’s claim and contend that he is not entitled to the
claims against them. The 3rd Defendant on the other hand failed and/or
neglected to contest the Plaintiff’s claim and therefore a default judgment was
entered against him before the trial. <o:p></o:p>ii.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The Action:<o:p></o:p>[2]&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; On 16th July, 2019, the Plaintiff caused a Writ of Summons
with a Statement of Claim against the Defendants jointly and severally for the
following judicial reliefs:<o:p></o:p>i.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Recovery of money in the sum of US$15,000.00, €5,200.00 and
US$2,000.00 or their Cedi Equivalences being various sums of monies paid to the
Defendants on 22nd March, 2017 for supply and sale of gold and exportation
documents which the Defendants failed to deliver.<o:p></o:p>ii.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Interest on reliefs 1 supra at the prevailing private
Commercial Bank Lending Rate from 22nd March, 2017 to date of last payment.<o:p></o:p>iii.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Special Damages and General Damages for losses incurred or
suffered and inconveniences suffered resulting from Deception and Fraud.<o:p></o:p>iv.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Costs including Solicitors fees on full Indemnity basis.<o:p></o:p>[3]&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; It is instructive to note that the three named persons on the
original writ of summons were “1. Kokrans Mining Company Ltd, 2. Nana Ayerebi
Akwa and 3. Ransford Akrofi Mensah”. After the service of the writ and its
accompanying statement of claim on the Defendants, a Notice of Entry of
Appearance was entered on behalf of all the three Defendants by Mr. Joseph
Turkson. In doing so, he changed the name of Nana Ayerebi Akwa as 2nd Defendant
to Nana Korankye Adade I as the 2nd Defendant. Counsel later filed a Statement
of Defence as well. The change of name of the 2nd Defendant was done after Nana
Korankye Adade I attended Court to say he has a link to the 1st Defendant, but
he is not Nana Ayerebi Akwa. Subsequently, Mr. Turkson on October 20, 2020
filed a Notice of Withdrawal of Legal Representation for the 3rd Defendant. The
Plaintiff’s Counsel on his own volition, based on the change of name,
subsequently applied to amend the Writ of Summons and same was granted. The
Amended Writ of Summons was filed on February 17, 2021. <o:p></o:p>iii.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The Pleadings:<o:p></o:p>[4]&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The Plaintiff filed an 18 paragraph statement of claim. It
was pleaded by the Plaintiff that he met one Mike Steve in France who
introduced himself as a joint owner of Sika Global Mining and Investment
Limited in Ghana with the 2nd and 3rd Defendants. According to the Plaintiff,
Mr. Steve said “he also doubled as the European representative of the 1st
Defendant Company”. It was also averred that Mr. Steve said the Company is
owned and managed by the 2nd and 3rd Defendants and they are “into genuine sale
and export of gold from Ghana and presented their business package/offer”. The
Plaintiff averred that he was connected to the 2nd and 3rd Defendant by Mike
Steve and they assured him that they are into genuine gold business with their
own mining concessions and factory at Osenase and other locations in Ghana. The
Plaintiff contends that he ended up giving the defendants amounts of money set
out in the writ of summons but they failed to deliver the gold to him.<o:p></o:p>[5]&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The Plaintiff specifically pleaded at paragraph 16 as
follows:<o:p></o:p>“The Plaintiff says he had
performed his side of the contractual bargain but the Defendants have failed to
perform their part of the bargain. The 2nd and 3rd Defendants have rather
connived and perpetuated fraud on the Plaintiff using the 1st Defendant as a
convenient instrument of fraud and th</main>