Brother of Asem Dake in court on drugs charges

Accra, April 17, GNA - Evans Charwetey Tsekobi, brother of Asem Dake aka Sheriff, the man allegedly behind the missing 76 parcels of cocaine on board the MV Benjamin vessel, on Tuesday appeared before an Accra Fast Track Court charged with laundering proceeds from a narcotic drug offence.

Tsekobi gave the name of his counsel as Mr Goka but the lawyer was not in court.

Mr William Kpobi, a Principal State Attorney, prayed the court, presided over by Mrs Iris Brown to suspend the taking of his plea. The court did not take his plea but remanded him into police custody to reappear on April 19 and asked the accused to appear with his counsel on the next adjourned date. The facts were not read in court, but the charge sheet said Tsekobi on September 27, 2006 parked a Toyota Land Cruiser belonging to his brother Asem Dake in his house.

The charge sheet said Tsekobi covered the vehicle with a tarpaulin with the intent to conceal it, knowing that his brother was being wanted for crimes involving cocaine.

It said the accused 93had reasonable knowledge that the said vehicle was indirectly obtained as a result of the commission of a narcotic drug offence".

The police have said Asem Dake allegedly carted the cocaine from the beach in his vehicle. At one of the cocaine trials the prosecution has said that in the early hours of April 26, last year, MV Benjamin arrived on the high seas off Tema.

The vessel was carrying 77 parcels of cocaine imported by Sheriff Asem Dake. Soon after the vessel arrived, the parcels of cocaine were offloaded unto two canoes, which sailed to Kpone Beach, near Tema. Some fishermen who spotted the canoes became suspicious and called the owner of the canoes.

The owner of the canoes and others informed a police Sergeant who was stationed at Tema Newtown who in turn mobilized the other policemen and they proceeded to Kpone Beach. At the beach, the accused persons looked on until Asem Dake offloaded the drugs into a four-wheel vehicle. The accused persons then followed the vehicle to Tema where Dake gave them some money and they failed to arrest him. 17 April 07