FREEDOM! Kwasi Kyei Darkwah aka KKD (middle) with father and brother after the court hearing yesterday
The Attorney-General (A-G), Marietta Brew Appiah-Opong, yesterday threw in the towel, indicating that she is no longer interested in prosecuting showbiz icon, Kwasi Kyei Darkwah aka KKD, who was standing trial for rape at an Accra High Court.
State prosecutors filed a nolle prosequi (NP) and the judge, Justice Bright Mensah, had no option but to discharge KKD.
KKD, who is also the Chief Executive of the Finest Productions, was charged for allegedly raping Ms Ewuraffe Orleans Thompson, 19, in the bathroom of the African Regent Hotel at Airport West Residential Area in Accra.
He was subsequently arrested on Saturday December 27, 2014, and detained at the Airport Police Station.
A seven-member jury was expected to be empanelled to preside over the trial yesterday.
However, when the case came up for hearing, a State Attorney, Ms Yvonne Atakora Obuobisa, said the Republic, through the A-G, had decided not to prosecute the case for now.
The Attorney-General claimed it was difficult for her to solicit support from the victim and her family in order to secure successful prosecution.
A five-paragraph statement issued by the A-G explaining the move said “the victim in this case, Ewureffe, is still very unwilling to testify in court. The victim states that she is highly traumatised by the events of the day of the incident and its aftermath and so is not in the right frame of mind to appear before the court.”
It said the A-G believed that it was not in the best interest of the victim and the prosecution to present her before the court at this point in time.
According to the statement, the A-G was mindful of the provisions under the Prosecutors Code, one of which was that the best interest of the victim was to be considered in cases of this nature, in deciding whether to prosecute a case or not, and that “the other witnesses in this case who are mostly family members of Ewurreffe are also very unwilling to testify”.
The statement further indicated that the A-G believed in the case and so held on to it with the hope that the witnesses would willingly appear to testify when they were needed by the court.
Not Over Yet
However, the Attorney-General served notice that the case was not yet over, warning that she might be compelled to revisit the matter at a later date.
“This is not to say that the A-G is unaware of the various legal processes at her disposal to compel the witnesses to appear before the court,” it noted.
The A-G said it must be noted that she still believed in the case and “reserves the right to commence the prosecution once the victim and the witnesses are ready.”
The decision of the A-G appeared to have come rather too late.
It may be recalled that the complainant in the case had, in a letter dated January 15, 2015, to the prosecution, allegedly declared her desire not to press charges against KKD.
But the prosecution had argued that it was sure it had enough evidence to prosecute the case.
Tough Time
Earlier, at the Kaneshie Magistrate Court, Counsel for KKD, Tony Forson Jnr, had predicted a tough time for the state in its attempt to prosecute his client, especially when the key witness had no desire to pursue the matter.
He had told the court presided over by Mrs Adwoa Akyaamaa Ofosu, when the state was committing the accused for trial at the High Court, that the state did not have any credible evidence to go ahead with the trial.
He said in a rape case, the evidence of the complainant was of paramount importance, and in the situation where the first prosecution witness had withdrawn her interest, there would be no basis for the prosecution to proceed.
Tony Forson Jnr stated that the trial in that regard was entering the realm of magic, adding, “What is happening is the persecution of the accused person. Why is the state still committing resources to continue with the case?”
According to the Bill of Indictment prepared by the state, the alleged rape incident occurred at the African Regent Hotel in Accra on December 27, 2014, when the victim had accompanied her cousin, Abena Konadu Owusu-Akyaw, to a fashion show dubbed, “Rip The Runway Fashion Show”.
The Human Rights Division of the Accra High Court had granted bail to KKD on humanitarian grounds on January 15, 2015.
The court had considered his ill-health at the time, and said it was unfair for him to remain in police custody while undergoing medical treatment at his own expense.
It also said the state had failed to ensure that his health needs were met without cost to him, since the “right to life is inviolable and this court has a duty to enforce that”.
The court subsequently granted KKD bail in the sum of GH¢20,000 with two sureties.
jeffdegraft44@yahoo.com
By Jeffrey De-Graft Johnson
Via: -Daily Guide
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