An Accra Circuit Court has granted a bail of GH¢100,000 to Abass Salifu, who is standing trial for allegedly mobilising men to assault one James Quainoo and also setting a Toyota Land Cruiser ablaze.
The accused together with one Nana Owusu Banahene, are before the court on three counts of causing unlawful damage, causing unlawful harm, to which they pleaded not guilty.
His counsel, Ali Gomda, pleaded with the court to grant him bail pending the trial. He assured the court that the accused is not flight risk and will appear to stand trial.
The court, presided over by His Honour Samuel Bright Acquah, granted him bail of GH¢100,000 with two sureties. The case has been adjourned to November 7, 2022.
Court documents indicate that the complainant in the matter had petitioned the Director-General of the Criminal Department of the Ghana Police Service for trespass on his property located at Dzorwulu in Accra, which he purchased from the late Hajia Mariama, who was the elder sister of Abass Salifu.
The complainant, according to the court documents, submitted documents to support his claims and all parties in the matter were asked to suspend any further development on the property to pave way for investigations.
But Nana Owusu Banahene, who is said to be an agent of the complainant, mobilised men and entered the property with a bulldozer and demolished part of the building on the land.
Abass Salifu, who resides in the property, according to court documents, went and mobilised men to the scene but the bulldozer driver managed to escape. The men, however, spotted a Toyota Landcruiser parked in the vicinity and they attacked the driver, sending him into coma, and later set the vehicle ablaze.
Background
Counsel for the accused, Ali Gomda, in an interview indicated that the defendant in the course of laying claim to the property wrote to inform the family of the deceased that the property belonged to them, but the family of the deceased denied the claims and said they had never been informed by any member of the family, neither was there any evidence to show that the property was sold.
He said the family also had no evidence of a cash amount of $600,000 paid to the late Hajia Mariama Seidu Salifu as suggested.
The lawyer said information available to him from the family was that the deceased was in talks with some group of people for allegedly taking the document of her property from her as of April 2, 2022, before she passed on April 9, 2022.
The lawyer said the group claimed they started with payment of the property since December 28, 2021.
He said prior to the death of Hajia Mariama, she had lived on the benevolence of family members, so it would be difficult for the group to have claimed they paid such an amount of money to the deceased.
According to the lawyer, the family has been advised to pursue the matter as a civil one.
By Ebenezer K. Amponsah