Editorial News of Thursday, 2 September 1999

Source: GRi Press Review

Remanded for multiple sale of land

The Accra Mail reports in an inside page story that Mavis Sackey, a trader, who went into hiding after defrauding a female colleague in the sale of three different plots of land, has been remanded in custody, when she failed to deposited 2 million cedis as a condition for bail.

Mavis Sackey, who pleaded not guilty, is to re-appear before the court on September 27, this year. The prosecution, the Accra Mail says, told an Accra Court presided over by Mrs Elizabeth Anderson-Yeboah, that in July 1994, the complainant Mrs Mavis Amon bought a plot of land on behalf of her sister from Mavis Sackey at Okpai-Gonno, Nungua, near Accra for 4 million cedis. When Mrs Amon started developing the land, she was challenged by another person, who claimed ownership of the same land, even though Mavis Sackey had prepared an indenture and a site plan on the land for her.

According to the prosecution, Mrs Amon informed the accused person, who later gave her another piece of land at Baatsonaa on the Spintex Road in Accra, with another indenture and a site plan covering it. Again when Mrs Amon decided to develop that land, she realised someone had started building on it. She conducted a search at the Lands Commission Secretariat in Accra where the documents indicated that both plots of land belonged to Manet Housing Limited and the National Trust Holding Company (NTHC) Properties Limited.

The Accra Mail says, Mrs Amon, sensing foul play, approached Mavis Sackey for a refund of money but the accused refused and insisted on replacing the land for the third time. Mrs Amon declined the offer and made a report to the police in August, last year, the paper concludes.