Private legal practitioner Andy Appiah-Kubi has disclosed that the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, knew he would be convicted before the Accra High Court delivered its judgment in the Samreboi illegal mining case.

According to a report by MyJoyOnline published on July 26, 2026, Appiah-Kubi, who formerly represented Wontumi, said the NPP chairman had informed him of the expected outcome of the case before the judgment was read.

"Chairman Wontumi had prior information that he would be convicted. He told me the content of the judgment. He told me that he will be jailed for twenty years," Appiah-Kubi said.

Despite the conviction, Appiah-Kubi maintained that the court's decision was flawed, arguing that it wrongly treated Chairman Wontumi and Akonta Mining as the same legal entity.

According to him, the evidence presented during the trial did not support the court's conclusion.

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"The evidence on the ground does not support the judgment. Per the company law, the company is different from the owner or shareholder," he stated.

He said the legal distinction between the company and its shareholder would form a central ground of appeal against the conviction.

"This will form the basis of our appeal," he added.

Appiah-Kubi further revealed that because Wontumi had anticipated the outcome, he instructed him earlier on the day of the judgment to file an appeal if the court found him guilty.

Chairman Wontumi was sentenced by the Accra High Court on July 20, 2026, to 20 years' imprisonment with hard labour after being convicted on illegal mining-related offences in the Samreboi case.

His legal team has indicated that it intends to challenge both the conviction and the sentence on appeal.

MRA/EB

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