Crime & Punishment of Thursday, 19 March 2015

Source: GNA

Two in court for supplying and possession of narcotic drugs

Two persons were on Wednesday arraigned at an Accra Circuit Court for conspiracy to commit crime, supplying of narcotic drugs and possession of narcotic drugs.

Wisdom Kudjo, a tiler and Kadiri Ibrahim, shop attendant, were said to have conspired and supplied 501.08g of cannabis

Wisdom was charged for supplying the said amount of cannabis to Kadiri, while he (Kadiri) was also charged for possessing the said amount of cannabis.

They both pleaded not guilty to the charges, but were remanded by the court to reappear on March 27.

Prosecuting, Police Inspector Martin Acheampong told the court that the complainant, Robert Hayford, and one other, who are witnesses in the case, are warders stationed at the Nsawam Medium Security Prisons.

Wisdom and Kadiri were on remand at the Nsawam Medium Security Prison.

He said on March 22, 2012, the complainant and the witness brought Kadiri to the High Court for proceedings. After the proceedings, Kadiri and other prisoners were taken into the Supreme Court room.

The prosecution said whilst there, Wisdom came in and approached Kadiri, and they both agreed to transport Indian hemp, a narcotic drug to the Nsawam prison.

He told the court that soon after the prison wardens were done with their duties and were escorting the prisoners out of the supreme court, Wisdom came back into the court room and handed a black polythene bag containing a compressed plant material, suspected to be Indian hemp to Kadiri to be sent to a certain Richmond in the Nsawam prison.

Police Inspector Acheampong said the witnesses in the case, who were escorting Kadiri and other prisoners in a procession saw Wisdom hand over the substance to Kadiri, and told him to stop but to their surprise he took to his heels.

He said they arrested Wisdom after a chase amidst gun shots, and they were both brought to the police together with the compressed plant material.

On July 26, 2013 the exhibit was submitted to the Police Forensic Laboratory where it tested positive of tetrahydrocannabinol, cannabinol and cannabidiol, all active ingredients in cannabis and with the weight of 501.08g.

According to the prosecution, on March 4, 2013, a duplicate docket was submitted to the Attorney General’s Department for study and advice, which was returned with the advice to charge the accused persons.