GHANAIAN TIMES

"Court's decision provokes wailing", is the headline of the lead story in the Times. The Times says 15 traders, mainly women at the Mamprobi Maize Market in Accra, yesterday turned the Adjabeng Community Tribunal premises into a scene of "weeping and gnashing of teeth" when their hope of retrieving nearly 45 million cedis from an accused, was dashed. According to the Times, their expectation was that the 45 million cedis would be paid to them through the court yesterday. Instead, the tribunal adjourned to November 24 the case in which Michael Kobina Amoo, businessman, is charged with defrauding the 15 women of 337 bags of maize valued at 45 million cedis. The Times says Amoo's counsel had told the tribunal that his client sold the maize to an Alhaji who had not paid him the amount. GRI

In another front page story, the Times reports that an Accra High Court, presided over by Mr Justice K.K. Apaloo, yesterday sentenced Yaw Appiah, a 41-year-old farmer to death by hanging for murdering Opanin Kwaku Akyerem, also a farmer at Tarkwa in the Western Region. According to the paper, the sentence was based on an unanimous verdict of guilt returned by a seven-member jury. Appiah pleaded not guilty. The prosecution, the times says, told the court that sometime in July 1990, Opanin Akyerem, 60, who was living wwwith his two wivces at Tarkwa, got missing from his cottage. It was alleged that at his age, Opanin Akyerem had become sexually weak and Appiah started sexual intercourse with the younger wife. The prosecution said the affair became an open secret and the deceased advised the wife and Appiah to put an end to their affair but they did not pay heed to Opanin Akyerem's advice. After the disappearance of Opanin Akyerem, both the younger wife, Ama Nkrumah and the accused were arrested but later released for want of evidence. The prosecution said the accused, while in custody met a witness and invited him for a visit to his cottage. The witness honoured the invitation and stayed with the accused for five days. During the stay, the accused took the witness to a grave and showed him where Opanin Akyerem was buried after he was murdered. The information got to the police who arrested the accused. GRI

In a back page story the Times reports the arrest of 17 illegal gold miners at A forest reserve in rthe Bawku West District of the Upper West Region. The Times says two Togolese and 15 Ghanaian illegal gold miners were arrested at the weekend at the Red Volta Forest Reserve near Tilli in the Bawku West District of the Upper QWest Region by a team of soldiers from the Airborne Force Detachment. The paper says 10 bicycles, cutlasses, shovels and pick axes, which were being used by the miners were impounded by the soldiers. The Times says the miners who devastated about two hectares of the forest reserve had their operations halted when the team led by Lieutenmant Woanya, effected the arrest. GRI