Residents of Jirapa in the Upper West Region have voiced their dissatisfaction with the Wa High Court’s decision to halt proceedings in the murder trial of Eric Johnson, the Chief Executive Officer of the Royal Cosy Hills Hotel.
The court announced it could not proceed due to a claim by the accused’s lawyers that the Chief Justice had ordered the case be transferred to Kumasi.
This decision did not sit well with the Jirapa community members who were present in court.
Three individuals are on trial for the gruesome murder of Mr. Johnson, who was the CEO of the Royal Cosy Hills Hotel at the time of his death.
State prosecutors, led by Saed Abdul Shakuur, and defense lawyers were ready to commence the hearing when Clement Eledi, lead counsel for the accused, presented a letter claiming that Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo had directed the case be moved to Kumasi in the Ashanti Region.
The court paused proceedings to verify the authenticity of the letter from the Chief Justice’s office.
Principal State Attorney Saed Abdul Shakuur expressed surprise at the development, noting that the prosecution was prepared to start the trial with 11 witnesses, seven of whom are based in Wa, and three are officers at the police regional headquarters.
“When we entered the court, the lawyer for the accused gave us a letter, purporting to be a letter from the CJ, instructing the district court to immediately transfer the matter to the high court in Kumasi. But I think that there’s more. We have 11 witnesses. Seven of them are in Wa.”
“Three are officers at the police regional headquarters. So, we intended to start the trial next week with the lawyers and we have since had conferences with everybody, we have filed witness cases and everything and so the case was about to start until this happened.”
Some Jirapa residents present in court vowed to resist the decision to transfer the case to Kumasi. One resident questioned the legitimacy of the petition that prompted the Chief Justice’s directive, suggesting that if it was written by the mother of the accused, it indicated a conflict of interest. Thus, the people of Jirapa also had a vested interest in the matter.
The residents argue that moving the case to Kumasi would be unjust, as the murder occurred in Jirapa, and traveling to Kumasi for each hearing would be both inconvenient and costly. They demand that the case be heard in Wa, where the crime was committed.
