Court frees Sherry, Agbodo, convicts Casely-Hayford

Accra, April 21, GNA - An Accra Fast Track Court on Thursday acquitted and discharged Mrs Hanny Sherry Ayittey, Treasurer of the 31st December Women's Movement (DWM), on three counts of corruption in the Ghana Rubber Estate Limited (GREL) divestiture trial.

The Court also freed Mr Emmanuel Amuzu Agbodo, Former Executive Secretary of the Divestiture Implementation Committee (DIC), on the one count of corruption, for which he was tried.

Acquitting Mrs Ayittey and Mr Agbodo, Mr Justice J.C. Amonoo-Monney, Appeal Court Judge who sat on the case as a High Court Judge, explained that the Prosecution failed to prove its case beyond any reasonable doubt against them.

However, Ralph Casely-Hayford, a Businessman, was sentenced to three years' imprisonment, for accepting bribe in the case.

Mr Justice Amonoo-Monney found Casely-Hayford guilty on one count of bribery and convicted him accordingly. The convict was charged with accepting a 70-million-cedi bribe in connection with the divestiture of GREL.

The three were arraigned on various charges of bribery and corruption on November 15, 2001. On January 30, the following year, the Prosecution withdrew their charge sheet and substituted them with a new one. On December 10, 2003 the Court acquitted and discharged a Housewife and a member of the DWM, Mrs Dorcas Sati Ocran, who was standing trial on charges of corruption with the three, for lack of evidence.

The Former President Jerry John Rawlings and his wife Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings, who were among National Democratic Congress (NDC) members that thronged the Court, embraced all the three after the judgement, which lasted for nearly two-and-a-half hours. Outside the Court premises, family members, sympathisers, friends and members of the DWM most of whom wore red beret, were seen chanting solidarity songs.

Mrs Ayittey was initially charged with six counts of corrupting a public officer, but while the trial was going on she was acquitted of three of them.

In its ruling today, the Court stated that the Prosecution woefully failed to prove its case against her beyond all reasonable doubt and accordingly freed her on the rest of the charges.

Mrs Ayittey was alleged to have received various sums of money from Dr Albert Owusu Banarfo, a Prosecution Witness, to influence the divestiture of GREL.

The monies included a total of 570,000 dollars, 150 pounds sterling and 25 million cedis.

In the case of Mr Agbodo he was alleged to have received 15 million cedis from Dr Banarfo for the same purpose while Casely-Hayford collected 70 million cedis.

According to the Prosecution, Casely-Hayford was to give 60 million cedis out of the figure to Mr Dan Abodakpi, then member of the DIC Board and to keep 10 million cedis for himself.

During evidence it came to light that three of the Prosecution Witnesses - Etienne Popeler, Former Managing Director of GREL; Dr Banarfo and Madam Georgina Okaiteye, Member of DWM - presented the money to Casely-Hayford at his office at Pig Farm in Accra.

In his evidence, however, Casely-Hayford said on the three occasions that the three people were at his office, Madam Okaiteye, whom, he said, he had known from his childhood, only delivered an invitation card for a party.

The trial judge said he found this piece of evidence doubtful, because on those occasions when Madam Okaiteye went to his office, he wondered why the two other Prosecution Witnesses, who were instrumental in the divestiture programme, accompanied her. 21 April 05