Veteran Ghanaian actor David Dontoh and musician Nat Brew Amandzebah have been ordered to open their defence before the Accra Circuit Court for allegedly stealing GH¢93, 000 belonging to Africa Awake.
The money is said to be part of a GH¢1.5 billion donated by Ghana’s late President, Professor John Evans Atta Mills to Mr. Kwame Wadaada, the founder of Africa Awake, an event organizing company to organize the Africa Champions League Concert.
Presiding Judge, Afi Agbanu Kudomor said the prosecution had established a prima facie case against the accused and adjourned the case for Mr. Dontoh and Amandzebah to open their defence.
She said “in the instance case, there is prima facie evidence that both accused persons by their actions on the said occasions conspired to commit the offence as charged”.
Mrs. Kudomor said after analysing the evidence adduced by the prosecution witnesses, the court finds that “accused persons conspired to steal and stole the said amount”.
It is to be recalled that in 2013, a high court in Accra presided by Justice Ofori Atta gave judgment in default against the artists and ordered them to refund GH125,000 representing the sum total of withdrawals with interest at the prevailing commercial bank rate.
It is the prosecution’s case that Mr. Dontoh, a popular television icon, and Mr. Amandzebah, a musician, being signatories to an Ecobank account belonging to Africa Awake, withdrew monies from the account totaling GH93,00 without the consent of the founder.
The prosecution invited two witnesses to testify against the accused after which counsel for the accused led by William Bannerman Jnr. made a submission of no case in 2015.
While the prosecution claimed the donation was made for Mr. Wadaada’s organization to launch and operate the African Music Champions’ League during the 2010 World Cup hosted by South Africa, the defence suggested that it was meant to promote Ghanaian culture at the event.
Counsel for the accused suggested to Mr. Wadaada during cross examination that the funds was solicited for a committee set up under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture, with Mr. Dontoh as its chairperson.
He suggested further that if there were any losses in the course of the event, it would be contained in the auditor’s report.
In ruling on the submission of no case, the court held that the burden of producing evidence in criminal trials lies on the prosecution.
Mrs. Kudomor said the prosecution invited two witnesses at the end of which counsel for the accused filed a submission of no case.
The judge said it was the court’s mandate to acquit the accused if at the end of the prosecution’s case; the evidence given does not sustain the charge against the accused.
She said counsel’s submission that the absence of an auditor’s report absolves his clients of the responsibility of rendering accounts to “the power(s) that be” cannot stand because in the absence of such a report, other means could be used to detect such discrepancies in the accounts.
