Bikkai granted bail by tribunal

Kumasi, June 21, GNA -- Edward Osei Gyamfi, Pharmacist and Managing Director of Bikkai Pharmaceuticals Limited, and five others were on Monday granted five million cedis bail each with a surety to be justified by a Kumasi Circuit Tribunal.

The rest were Baba Adams and Alhaji Ketewa both electronics mechanics, Issah Abubakari, unemployed, Farouke Abdulai, a tailor and Akoto Mensah, a carpenter.

They all pleaded not guilty to two counts of forcible entry and causing damage to a wooden fence and signposts estimated at 10 million cedis, property of Mr Sylvester Owusu Asare, Managing Director of Silvercrest Investments Limited.

The case was adjourned to Monday, June 28. Police Superintendent Florence Arthur, prosecuting told the tribunal chaired by Mr Joseph Abanga that sometime in 1997, an Accra High Court ordered the auction of the building housing the Bikkai Pharmaceutical Company at a cost of 590 million cedis and it was purchased by the management of Silvercrest Investments Limited.

She said the new management erected wooden fence and signposts on and around the building to begin renovation works. When Gyamfi heard of the purchase, he filed a writ at an Accra High Court to restrain the management of Silvercrest from carrying out the renovation works but the application was dismissed on Thursday, June 17.

Superintendent Arthur said, following the dismissal of the writ, the management of Silvercrest sent some workers to the building on Friday, June 18 to begin work. She said while they were working, Gyamfi and the other accused persons armed with cutlasses, hammers and other implements destroyed the wooden fence and the signposts erected, estimated at about 10 million cedis.

The prosecution said a report was made to the Police the following day, Saturday, June 19 and after investigations they were charged with the offence. Mr Dei Kwarteng, a Kumasi-based lawyer and counsel for the accused persons, in applying for bail for his clients said the building has not been auctioned.

He said there is a suit pending before an Accra High Court over the ownership of the building, which is the subject matter in dispute and the Police have not been fair to the tribunal with actual facts of the case.

Mr Kwarteng tendered some burnt documents belonging to his clients and said the accused persons attacked the complainant's workers, when they found out that they were burning some documents belonging to Bikkai.