The Kwabenya Circuit Court, presided over by His Honour Prince Osei Owusu, has denied bail to six persons standing trial over their alleged involvement in the shipment of about 3.9 tonnes of suspected cocaine from Ghana to France. The court considered whether the accused persons would stand trial and whether they were likely to interfere with the proceedings. The six accused will remain in custody due to the nature of the alleged offence.
The six accused, including Francis Narh Amanor, Frank Adu-Boahen, Togbe Agbeti, Andrews Tetteh Amponsah, Daniel Laryea, and Helena Akua Denkyi, had their lawyers argue that they had cooperated with investigators and were willing to stand trial. The defence lawyers also cited health concerns affecting some of the accused and urged the court to consider granting them bail pending trial. However, the court was not persuaded to grant bail.
The first accused, Francis Narh Amanor, is alleged to have been the exporter named on the containers involved in the shipment. The second accused, Frank Adu-Boahen, is alleged to be the owner of the goods. The other four accused are staff of the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA). They are alleged to have been involved in the scanning of the containers at the Tema Port.
According to the prosecution's case, the Customs officials detected anomalies in the scan images but allegedly failed to flag them for further examination before the containers were cleared for export. The four containers were subsequently intercepted in France with approximately 3.9 tonnes of substances suspected to be cocaine. The accused persons face charges including conspiracy to export narcotic drugs and unlawful exportation of narcotic drugs.
The case has also placed the Customs scanning process at the Tema Port under scrutiny. The prosecution alleges that the four containers underwent scan-image analysis before leaving Ghana and that abnormalities were detected but not acted upon through further examination. The court heard renewed bail applications from the accused persons, whose lawyers argued that their clients had cooperated with investigators and had demonstrated their willingness to appear before the court.
The defence also raised health concerns in urging the court to consider releasing the accused pending trial. However, Justice Prince Osei Owusu said his consideration included whether the accused persons would appear to stand trial and whether their release could create a risk of interference with the proceedings. He said the nature of the alleged offence warranted their continued remand.
The case has been adjourned to October 20, 2026. The accused persons, including the four GRA officials, also face an allegation of abetment. The prosecution's case against the six accused will continue on the adjourned date.
Key points
- The court denied bail due to the nature of the alleged offence and the risk of interference with the proceedings.
- The six accused are alleged to have been involved in the shipment of about 3.9 tonnes of suspected cocaine from Ghana to France.
- The case has placed the Customs scanning process at the Tema Port under scrutiny.
