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Tag: Nkrabea Effah Dartey

  • How Aisha Huang used forged marriage documents to acquire permanent residence in Ghana – Witness tells court

    The second prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of Aisha Huang has detailed how the Chinese national acquired a permanent residency status in Ghana.

    Superintendent David Essien on Monday, November 14, 2022, gave his witness statement to the Accra High Court presided by Justice Lydia Osei Marfo where he told the court about the two occasions he ever came into contact with the accused.

    According to the prosecution witness, he first met the accused on August 30, 2016, when a publication about her alleged galamsey activities at Bepotenteng in Amansie Central District of the Ashanti Region was reported in the media.

    The witness who is an officer of the Ghana Immigration Service assigned to the enforcement unit said he was tasked with investigating the report to ascertain the residence status of the accused as well as the allegations contained in the report.

    He said the accused person honoured an invitation by the GIS and submitted her passport which showed her status as a permanent resident.

    The witness added that he encountered the accused person a second time when a team of immigration officers arrested some Chinese nationals who were engaged in illegal mining activities at Bepotenteng in 2017.

    The suspects told the arresting officers that they had their passports with the accused who is their employer.

    Superintendent Essien said he later got the accused person to honour an invitation following which her statement was taken and she together with those arrested were sent to the head office of the Immigration Service in Accra.

    During the cross-examination of the witness by the defence counsel, lawyer Nkrabea Effah Dartey questioned whether the first encounter between the witness and the accused person was only in reference to her immigration status.

    But responding to the question, the witness said it was to investigate other issues about the accused person.

    He said the investigations established that the accused had actually acquired her residency permit by purporting to have been married to a Ghanaian and backing same with forged documents.

    “When we examined the passport she was on an indefinite permit which was granted her based on her supposed marriage to a Ghanaian known as Anthony Fabian. However, investigations conducted by the Ghana Immigration Service established that the accused used forged marriage certificate and forged Ghana passport in support of her application for the indefinite residence permit,” he said.

    The witness told the court that the discovery led to the revocation of the permit granted the accused and also led to her repatriation in 2018.

    “As a result of this the comptroller general of the GIS revoked the indefinite residence permit on grounds of fraudulent misrepresentation in accordance with Section 22 Subsection 2 a of Immigration Act 2000 Act 573 which led to the subsequent repatriation of the accused on December 19, 2018,” he stated.

    Aisha Huang is facing charges for engaging in mining and the sale of minerals without a license.

    She was recently arrested in Ghana following her repatriation in 2018.

    Aisha Huang who is said to have been engaged in illegal mining upon her return to the country, according to the prosecution entered the country using forged documents and identity.

    Hearing of the case is scheduled to continue on Tuesday, November 15, 2022, with the defence resuming its cross-examination of the prosecution’s second witness.’

    Source: Ghanaweb

  • Why should you be afraid if you told the truth? – Effah Dartey to Anas

    Private legal practitioner, Nkrabea Effah Dartey, has questioned the insistence of investigative journalist, Anas Aremeyaw to testify with his identity hidden in the criminal trial of former GFA President, Kwasi Nyantakyi.

    The Supreme Court on Tuesday, November 8, 2022, quashed a High Court ruling which granted the journalist the right to testify with a mask in the case of the Republic v Kwasi Nyantakyi & Another.

    Reacting to the court’s ruling in an interview with Okay FM, Mr Effah Dartey questioned why the journalist wants to testify with his identity hidden saying, “If you know what you are doing and what you are saying is the truth why should you be afraid?”

    “Me Nkrabea Effah Dartey, if you look me in the eyes and call me an ex-convict I won’t be happy but that is the truth. I was convicted in June 1981. I was convicted and sentenced for planning a coup, to stage a coup and become a head of state. But if you as a journalist claim Kwasi Nyantakyi has taken a bribe you should come out openly and tell us,” he added.

    Cromwell Gray LLP, lawyers for the celebrated investigative journalist, Anas Aremeyaw Anas, has urged the public to disregard what it describes as a false reportage within a section of the media that the Supreme Court of Ghana presided over by Baffoe-Bonnie, JSC, has ordered the journalist to testify without a mask.

    According to a seven-point release available to GhanaWeb, the lawyers indicated that the Supreme Court in its ruling on Tuesday, November 8, 2022, did not make such an order. They also noted that their client is not being compelled by the apex to appear in court without his mask.

    Background:

    Mr Nyantakyi and a former Chairman of Northern Regional Football Association (RFA), Abubakar Alhassan, were charged with conspiracy to commit crime in a football scandal following Tiger Eye PI expose.
    Mr Nyantakyi is facing additional charges of corruption by a public officer and fraud by an agent.

    They have, however, denied the charges and have been admitted to bail in the sum of Gh¢1m with three sureties each; one of the sureties is to be justified.

  • Eight witnesses to testify against Aisha Huang, four accomplices – Godfred Dame

    The Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Godfred Dame, indicated that the state would present eight witnesses in the case against alleged small-scale mining (galamsey) kingpin, Aisha Huang, and her four accomplices.

    This is after the Attorney General withdrew the four witness statements he had previously filed against the alleged ‘galamsey’ kingpin.

    Speaking during the trial on Tuesday, Godfred Yeboah told the Accra High Court presided over by Justice Lydia Osei Marfo, that the prosecution had to withdraw the four witness statements to enable it to file the full set of eight witness statements.

    He added that the prosecution was ready for a trial because all eight statements were ready and would be filed as soon as possible.

    Justice Lydia Osei Marfo granted the request of Dame and adjourned the case to October 24, 2022, for the AG to file the documents.

    Meanwhile, the court has remanded Aisha Huang to police custody.

    Presiding Judge Lydia Osei Marfo, during a sitting on Tuesday, October 11, 2022, refused the plea of her lawyer, Nkrabea Effah Dartey, after the latter argued that his client deserved bail.

    According to the judge, all arguments previously made against his plea for bail, including his client’s flight risk, remain and will not be changed.

    She added that his constant presence in court with his client would be the only way to ensure the case is heard accordingly for the determination of his client’s fate.

    State Prosecutor Godfred Dame, on his part, reiterated the government’s commitment to ensuring the case is duly heard and that the accused are prosecuted if found guilty.

    Aisha Huang is in court over charges of mining without a license and engaging in the sale and purchase of minerals, four other charges, including undertaking a mining operation without a license.

    She is also facing four other charges, including undertaking a mining operation without a license, facilitating the participation of persons engaged in a mining operation, illegal employment of foreign nationals, and entering Ghana while prohibited from re-entry were filed at the Criminal Division of the Accra High Court on Friday, September 16, 2022

    Also, four others, who appeared in court, 3 Chinese nationals and a Vietnam national, have all been remanded to reappear in court on November 1, 2022.

    The 3 Chinese nationals – Shi Yang alias Philip, Li Wei Guo and Shi Mei Zhi are on a provisional charge of engaging in small scale-mining without a licence, contrary to section 99(2)(a) of the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703) as amended by Act 995 of 2019.

    Vietnam national; Nguyen Thi Thanh Tuyen is, however, being charged for remaining in Ghana after the expiration of a permit contrary to sections 20(1) and 52(1)(d) of the Immigration Act, 2000 (Act 573).

    Hearing their cases separately, the sitting judge heard the pleas of the 3 Chinese nationals but reserved that of the Vietnamese, Nguyen Thi Thanh Tuyen, who had difficulty understanding the Chinese and English languages through which she was communicated.

  • Court silences Aisha Huang’s lawyer, orders police custody till end of trial

    Chinese National, Aisha Huang, who is in court for her involvement in illegal mining activities (galamsey) in Ghana, has been remanded to police custody by the Criminal Division of the Accra High Court.

    Presiding Judge, Lydia Osei Marfo during sitting on Friday, October 11, 2022, refused the plea of her lawyer, Nkrabea Effah Dartey after the latter argued that his client deserved bail.

    According to the judge, all arguments previously made against his plea for bail, including the flight risk of his client remain and will not be changed.

    She added that, his constant presence in court with his client will be the only way to ensure the hearing is heard accordingly for the determination of his client’s fate.

    State Prosecutor, Godfred Dame on his part reiterated government’s commitment to ensuring the case is duly heard and that the accused are prosecuted if found guilty.

    Aisha Huang is in court over charges of mining without a license and engaging in the sale and purchase of minerals, four other charges including undertaking a mining operation without a license.

    She is also facing four other charges including undertaking a mining operation without a license, facilitating the participation of persons engaged in a mining operation, illegal employment of foreign nationals, and entering Ghana while prohibited from re-entry were filed at the Criminal Division of the Accra High Court on Friday, September 16, 2022.

    Her case has since been adjourned to October 24, 2022 for case management.

    Four others remanded:

    Meanwhile, four others, who appeared in court, 3 Chinese nationals and a Vietnam national, have all been remanded to reappear in court on November 1, 2022.

    The 3 Chinese nationals – Shi Yang alias Philip, Li Wei Guo and Shi Mei Zhi are on a provisional charge of engaging in small scale-mining without a licence, contrary to section 99(2)(a) of the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703) as amended by Act 995 of 2019.

    Vietnam national; Nguyen Thi Thanh Tuyen, is however being charged for remaining in Ghana after the expiration of a permit contrary to sections 20(1) and 52(1)(d) of the Immigration Act, 2000 (Act 573).

    Hearing their cases separately, the sitting judge heard the pleas of the 3 Chinese nationals but reserved that of the Vietnamese; Nguyen Thi Thanh Tuyen who had difficulty understanding the Chinese and English languages through which she was communicated.

    Court denies accused persons bail:

    On Tuesday, September 27, 2022, the accused persons were denied bail for the second time.

    The sitting judge, Samuel Bright Acquah, argued that the case was one of public concern considering the depth of damage being done to the environment through galamsey activities.

    Citing threats by Ghana Water Company to shut down if nothing is done about galamsey activities, and the impact of same on marine species in affected waterbodies among others, the judge refused the accused persons bail.

    The accused persons were prior to this, denied bail on September 14, 2022, after lead counsel Nkrabea-Effah Dartey asked the court to grant his client and her three other Chinese counterparts bail.

    Aisha Huang’s request according to GhanaWeb’s court reporter was objected to by the prosecution.

    According to the prosecution, new arrests have been made therefore granting the accused persons bail may give them the opportunity to interfere with witnesses and investigations.

    The prosecution while citing public interest in the matter also argued that Aisha Huang has a history of sneaking in and out of the country and is therefore a flight risk.

    Source:ghanaweb.com