Abodakpi's Appeal fixed for Thursday

Accra, Oct 9, GNA - The Court of Appeal (CA), will on Thursday, October 11, listen to a Motion for the Amendment of Grounds of an Appeal filed on behalf of Dan Abodakpi, former Minister of Trade and Industry, who is currently serving a 10-year jail term.

Abodakpi, Member of Parliament (MP) for Keta, was jailed by an Accra Fast Track Court on February 5, this year in a trial which lasted for almost two and half years.

He was found guilty on seven counts of conspiracy, defrauding by false pretences, and wilfully causing financial loss of 400,000 dollars to the State.

In April this year, the same Fast Track Court that tried the convicted MP, struck out an application for bail pending an appeal against his conviction and sentence.

Not satisfied with the court's ruling, Mr Tony Lithur, counsel for Abodakpi, took the matter up at the Court of Appeal, which is the current application against his client's conviction and sentence. When the case was called on Tuesday, the three-member panel of the Court, presided over by Mr Justice B T Aryeetey, adjourned proceedings to Thursday, because Mr Lithur drew the court's attention to the fact that he had filed a motion for amendment of grounds of an appeal application which was pending before the court.

Mr. Aryeetey stated that since Mrs. Gertrude Aikins informed the court that she was given a copy of the amendment motion only this morning by counsel on the other side, the court had to give her some time to study it, before counsel on both sides made their submissions.

The presiding judge said since the appeal application and the motion for amendment had separate dockets, the court would have to hear the latter first on Thursday and depending on the outcome, he would then proceed to listen to the substantive application.

The two other panel members hearing the appeal application are Mr Justice Marfo Siaw, and Mrs Justice Mariama Owusu.