An Accra High Court has asked the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) to make available to Patience Botwe, the first accused person in the Cecilia Dapaah matter, the charge statements of the ongoing criminal trial.
The matter involves the alleged pilferage of US$1 million at the residence of the former Sanitation and Water Resources minister by her house helps, including some huge sums of money in other currencies, as well as some items belonging to Madam Dapaah and her husband.
Miss Botwe, the first accused and a former house help of the complainant, had filed an application to the court requesting access to the documents to augment her defence.
Legal representative of the first accused had argued that, the documents would be vital in their cross-examination of Madam Abena Dapaah and her husband.
The legal team’s earlier attempt to obtain the documents through a request under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, was denied by the OSP, claiming the information was exempt.
The OSP had said Miss Botwe’s legal representations failed to properly invoke the jurisdiction of the court, making the request premature.
Consequently, Botwe’s lawyers sought the intervention of the High Court to secure the necessary materials for her defence.
But Justice Marie-Louis Simmons, the judge that presided over the matter overruled these objections, citing the court’s inherent powers to ensure a fair trial.
She highlighted the importance of allowing the accused access to all relevant documents in line with Article 19(2)(e)(g) of the 1992 Constitution, which guarantees an accused person’s right to prepare a defence.
In her ruling, Justice Simmons reemphasised the need for the documents to be given to Miss Botwe’s team to aid the cross-examination of the complainants, considering the inconsistencies in the accounts of Madam Dapaah and her husband regarding the source of the stolen money.
The court established that the materials would aid the accused to challenge the evidence of the prosecution.
Meanwhile, the transcripts and recordings of interviews and interrogations of Madam Dapaah and her husband which were equally requested by the defence were denied.
Justice Simmons explained that those recordings would not be needed by the defence at this stage of the trial.
The OSP has been ordered to provide the relevant documents within a week of receiving the court’s ruling, ensuring that Botwe’s legal team has sufficient time to prepare for cross-examination.
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