Opuni Trial: Supreme Court Trashes ‘Special Leave’ Appeal

The Supreme Court has dismissed an application filed by lawyers for the embattled former Chief Executive Officer of COCOBOD, Dr. Stephen Opuni seeking special leave to appeal a decision of the Court of Appeal rejecting a ‘stay of proceedings’ in his trial.

According to the Justices of the Apex court, the lawyers of Dr. Opuni failed to convince them as to why the application should be granted.

The dismissed application was filed at the Supreme Court after an attempt by Dr. Opuni’s legal team to tender a letter through a witness into evidence was rejected at the high court and a subsequent appeal at the Court of Appeal was also dismissed same.

The said letter dated November 20, 2014, according to the lawyers, was sent from COCOBOD to Agricult and was referred to Lithovit Foliar Fertiliser (LFF), the company at the centre of the trial as liquid.

Dr. Opuni and Mr. Agongo are facing 27 charges, including defrauding by false pretenses, willfully causing financial loss to the State, money laundering, corruption by a public officer and contravention of the Public Procurement Act.

They have both pleaded not guilty to the charges and are on a GH¢300,000 self-recognizance bail each.

Last October it was reported that the hard drive containing records of the ongoing criminal case has gone missing.

The hard drive is part of a number of hard drives Citi News gathered have been stolen from system units in about five High Courts at the new law court complex.

Operatives of the National Security who are said to be investigating the matter arrested some workers in the affected courts as well as Judicial Service staff who work in the Information Technology (IT) department for questioning.

---citinewsroom