Supreme Court dismisses bail application for cocaine suspects

Accra, June 11, GNA - The Supreme Court (SC) on Friday dismissed an appeal filed by five of the accused persons charged with shipping 588.33 kilograms of cocaine into the country.

It reaffirmed the decision of the Court of Appeal (CA) on March 3 that revoked the bail granted to them by an Accra Regional Tribunal. Dismissing the appeal, Ms Justice Sophia A. B. Akuffo, presiding, said the Court would give its reasons on July 7.

Other members on the panel were Justice Date-Bah, Justice Dr Seth Twum, Justice Mrs Georgina Woode and Justice Professor Modibo Ocran. The accused appellants are Kevin Gorman, 59, an American, Alan Hodson 45, David Logan 43, Frank Lavelrick 43, all British, and 45-year-old Sven Herb, a German.

They appealed against the unanimous decision of the Court of Appeal on March 3, this year that revoked the bail offered them by a Greater Accra Regional Tribunal in view of the gravity of the offence. Mohammed Ibrahim Kamil, one of the accused persons, did not file any appeal at the Supreme Court.

The accused persons, who were standing trial at the Regional Tribunal, were charged with conspiring and possessing narcotic drugs without authority, were granted 300 million-cedis bail each with two sureties to be justified.

Gorman was additionally charged with using his house for narcotic offence.

The six accused persons pleaded not guilty during their trial at the Regional Tribunal.

However, when the Appeal Court revoked the bail the case was transferred to an Accra High Court.

The appellants in their statements of case noted that the Court of Appeal failed to appreciate the proper legal position that bail could be granted at any stage of the proceeding in respect of the law.