It has emerged at the Criminal High Court in Accra presided over by Justice Lydia Osei Marfo that, galamsey kingpin Aisha Huang, re-entered into Ghana through the Aflao Port after she was repatriated in 2018.

The notorious Chinese galamsey queen according to investigators said she came back to the country because she missed her husband, whose name was given as Prince Amoah.

“When we asked her why she came into Ghana, she stated that she had missed her husband, whose name she gave as one Prince Amoah, and that she had come to visit him,” the 10th Prosecution Witness told the court.

Aisha Huang is facing four charges namely; undertaking a mining operation without a licence, facilitating the participation of persons engaged in a mining operation, illegal employment of foreign nationals, and entering Ghana while prohibited from re-entering.

She has pleaded not guilty and has since been remanded into prisons custody while the trial is ongoing.

In court on Monday, April 17, 2023, an Inspector of the Ghana Police Service, currently seconded to the Ministry of National Security as a Detective, Simon Nyaho, explained to the court how Aisha Huang re-entered the country upon his team’s investigation.

He told the court that on September 6, 2022, his team was tasked to investigate the circumstances under which the accused person re-entered the country and the activities she was engaged in since her re-entry.

“We secured a court order to enable us conduct a further search of the residence of the accused person,” Detective Nyaho told the court as he read his witness statement to the court.

He added that at Aisha Huang’s residence “we found 19 bottles of substances which was later confirmed by the Ghana Standards Authority to be mercury, 200 pieces of AA cartridges and a warehouse containing toiletries, groceries, excavator parts and other Chinese consumables.

“We also took custody of two metal safes earlier retrieved from the residence of the accused person by Officers of the Defence Intelligence.

“I together with my team interrogated the accused person and she stated that she re-entered Ghana through the Aflao Port,” Detective Nyaho told the court.

Detective Nyaho who is the 10th Prosecution Witness in the ongoing trial said “When we asked her why she came into Ghana, she stated that she had missed her husband, whose name she gave as one Prince Amoah, and that she had come to visit him.”

The Witness told the court that after interrogation “we took a statement on caution from the accused person dated 28th September 2022, and with the permission of the court I wish to tender it in evidence.”

He said the two passport were handed over to the Ghana Immigration Service.

Further Investigations

Detective Nyaho said he knew the accused person En Huang also known as Ruixia Huang after she was handed over to his office on September 2, 2022 for further investigation, by the Ghana Immigration Service who had earlier on caused her arrest.

According to him, she was handed over together with the following items; yellow fever vaccination card, COVID 19 vaccination card, Non-Citizen Ghana card application form with its payment receipts, and two passports from the Peoples Republic of China.

“One of the passports had the name En Huang with passport number G39575625,” and “The date of birth on the passport is 7th July 1986, issued in Ningxia, China on 14th January 2010 and it was to expire on 13th January 2020.

“The place of birth indicated in the passport is Nei Mongol. It has a picture of the accused person,” the Witness told the court.

He said “The second passport had the name Ruixia Huang with number EE9994609,” and “The date of birth on the passport is 7th November 1975, issued in Fujian, China on 14th January 2019 and is to expire on 13th January 2029.

“The place of birth indicated in this passport is Fujian. This passport also has a picture of the accused person,” Detective Nyaho noted.

Evidence

The witness while being led by Mercy Arthur, a Principal State Attorney, identified certain documents retrieved during investigations and same were admitted into evidence.

The documents tendered in evidence are a Yellow fever vaccination card bearing the name Huang Ruxia and a non-Citizen Ghana identity card bearing the name En Huang.

A covid 19 vaccination card bearing the name Huang Ruxia and an Application form for a non-citizen identity card also bearing the name En Huang

Aside from that, Aisha Huang’s three separate ailment receipts bearing the name – Huang En and investigation cautioned statement of the accused person.

EIB Network’s Legal Affairs Correspondent, Murtala Inusah, reports that the mouth of the witness was sealed by counsel for Aisha Huang, led by Lawyer Miracle Attachey.

The case has been adjourned to April 19, 2023.