The judge was lenient with Agradaa; she deserves 20 years — Lawyer

Private legal practitioner, Benjamin Tachie Antiedu Esq., has disagreed with suggestions that the 15-year jail term handed to self-styled evangelist Patricia Asiamah, popularly known as Nana Agradaa, is excessive.

According to him, the sentence delivered by an Accra Circuit Court falls within Ghana’s sentencing regime and could have been even harsher if not for the judge’s leniency.

Speaking on Accra-based GHOne TV on Friday, July 4, Tachie Antiedu said the ruling would also test the resilience of Agradaa’s Weija-based Heaven Way Church.

“The judge was lenient with Agradaa. I would have extended her jail term to 20 years. Agradaa’s jail term isn’t excessive. It is within the sentencing regime,” he stated.

He added, “Agradaa’s jail term will be a test as to whether her church will survive or not.”

The former fetish priestess-turned-evangelist was sentenced to 15 years in prison with hard labour by Her Honour Evelyn Asamoah on Thursday, July 3.

The verdict followed charges of charlatanic advertisement and defrauding by false pretences.

Meanwhile, legal practitioner and Acting Chief Executive Officer of the National Petroleum Authority (NPA), Godwin Edudzi Tamaklo, has described the sentence as harsh for a first-time offender.

In a social media post sighted by ModernGhana News, Tamaklo wrote, “Fifteen years for a first-time offender is excessive.”