The ‘apostle’ with NDC lawyers in court yesterday
The so-called clergyman, ‘Apostle’ Kwabena Owusu Agyei, whose blood-curdling remarks and death threats on the chairperson of the Electoral Commission (EC) earned him an arrest by National Security operatives, has been granted bail by an Accra Circuit Court.
The 56-year-old self-acclaimed pastor and sympathizer of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) has been ordered by the court to present three sureties, two of whom must be public servants earning not less than GH¢2,000 every month, as part of the bail terms.
He was also ordered by the court presided over by Justice Emmanuel Essandoh, a High Court judge sitting with additional responsibilities as a Circuit Court judge, to report himself to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service on Mondays and Fridays.
The pastor, who was arrested with marijuana (wee), a narcotics substance, in his possession, was before the court facing three counts of threat of death, unlawful possession of narcotics and an assault on a public officer.
He had threatened to kill the EC chairperson if she went ahead to compile a new voters’ register. Luck ran out for him when in the course of his arrest the security agents found the narcotic substance on him.
When a urine sample was later taken from him and sent to the Police Hospital laboratory, the result came back positive for both wee and tramadol.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges and his legal team made up of NDC lawyers – Victor Kojoga Adawudu and Francis Xavier Sosu – pleaded with the court to grant him bail pending the trial.
Crime
‘Apostle’ Agyei caused a stir when he threatened on a live Facebook broadcast to kill Mrs. Jean Mensa for daring to compile a new voters’ register for the 2020 presidential and parliamentary elections.
He threatened Mrs. Mensa to stop the compilation of the new register or die young at midnight, although he did not mention any specific day.
‘Apostle’ Agyei was arrested on June 9, 2020 by some officers of the National Security while he was granting an interview to a journalist from Accra-based Hot FM.
In a video circulating on social media, some men, who claimed to be from the National Security, were seen moving into the house of the NDC preacher to arrest him.
Things took an interesting twist when a video went viral, which suggested that security officers found parcels of a substance suspected to be marijuana on him later on.
God’s Prophecies
The accused was present in court under tight security and his lawyers pleaded with the court to grant him bail pending trial.
There were murmurings in the court when his counsel, Adawudu, told the court that the accused person’s threats against the EC boss were “prophecies from God.”
Mr. Adawudu pleaded with the court that, per the 1992 Constitution, the personal liberty of the accused should not be curtailed by remanding him in custody on what he called ‘mere’ allegations levelled against him by the prosecution.
Besides, he told the court that, per the Supreme Court decision, all offences were ‘bailable’ and the court should exercise its discretion in favour of the accused person.
Bail Opposition
The application was opposed by ASP Sylvester Asare, who stated that inasmuch as accused persons are entitled to bail, it was at the discretion of the court, saying “we pray that the court must take into consideration the safety of the public in taking its decision.”
He told the court that investigations were still ongoing and the accused person, when granted bail, might interfere with the investigations which would affect the case.
ASP Asare added that given the nature of the charges, ‘Apostle’ Agyei would not appear for the trial if granted bail.
Container House
There was a controversy about where the accused person lives as the prosecutor told the court that the accused does not have a fixed place of abode.
He told the court that the accused person lives in a container at Greda Estate at Nungua in Accra, hence he would not appear for the trial when granted bail.
This position was objected to by Mr. Adawudu, who said his client had a permanent place of abode and went on to mention house number L4 Coastal Estate, Spintex, as the accused person’s place of abode.
But ASP Asare insisted that the accused person lives in a container and he actually led the police to the said container where a search was conducted.
Ruling
Justice Essandoh, after listening to both sides, granted the accused person a bail of GH¢100,000 with three sureties, two of whom must be justified.
Besides, he was ordered to deposit his passport with the court registry, but he told the court he does not have a passport.
The case was adjourned to July 21, 2020.
Brief Facts
The brief facts of the case, as read by ASP Asare, showed that the Chairperson of the EC, Jean Mensa, on June 5, 2020 made a complaint to the police that the accused person had made death threats against her while in the performance of her statutory duties.
He said intelligence led to the arrest of the accused person at Greda Estate while granting an interview to some journalists.
He stated that a search conducted on the accused revealed a suspected aphrodisiac medicine labelled ‘Mr. Q’ and two brown wrapped substances suspected to be narcotic plants as tests conducted on it tested positive for cannabis (wee).
ASP Asare told the court that the prosecution was awaiting a report on the transcription of the video tape by the accused person.
BY Gibril Abdul Razak