Accra, June 10, GNA- An Accra High Court hearing the collapsed Capital Bank case has admitted an audio recording of the confrontation between William Ato Essien and Special Investigation Team (SIT).
The Court had overruled objections in the tendering of a pen drive (audio recording) by Mr Baffour Gyau Bonsu Ashia, counsel for Essien, who held that the recording of the confrontation between his client and SIT was done without Essien’s consent.
Mr Ashia held that SIT failed to inform Essien about the said recordings.
He was of the view that failure of the SIT to inform Essien about the recordings, violated the rights of Essien’s privacy and the said recording was self-incriminatory.
He contends that the SIT should have informed Essien that they were recording, adding that the said recording would be used against him during a criminal trial.
Defence counsel said the teams had an obligation to have informed Essien, adding Fitzgerald Odonkor, the third accused person, who was tendering the said pen drive, was not present when the said confrontation took place.
Counsel therefore prayed the Court to exclude the tendering of the pen drive.
Mr Justine Amenuvour, counsel for Odonkor, prayed the Court to admit the pen drive in evidence because lawyers of the accused persons and the Prosecution were all present when the recording took place.
Mr Amenuvor said the pen drive was not inadmissible per the Evidence Act.
The Court presided over by Mr Justice Eric Kyei Baffour, a Court of Appeal Judge sitting with additional responsibility as a High Court judge, overruled the objection, saying the alleged recordings by the SIT were done in the presence of prosecution and lawyers of the accused persons,
Again, the Court noted that whatever statements made by the Accused persons before the investigative team were made after due caution had been delivered by the team
The Court said, “In that regard any statement made could not have been said to have been made without William Ato Essien, the first accused person.”
“In view of the fact that first accused persons (Essien) was put on notice with a caution statement delivered in the presence of the lawyers at the time… the recording cannot be said to be a violation of the rights of the Essien.”
I accordingly overrule this objection, the audio on pen drive stands admitted in evidence,” Court ruled.
It therefore went ahead to play the audio to the hearing of the court and its audience.
Answering question under cross examination by Essien’s lawyer, Mr Baffour Gyan Bonsu Ashia, Fitzgerald Donkor, the third accused person in the collapsed Capital Bank trial, said the board of the defunct bank was not in favor of the placement of GHS100million and GHS30 million cedis in All Time Capital Bank and Nordea Capital.
According to Odonkor, that could be ascertained in the minutes of the Capital bank’s Board meetings.
Odonkor debunked the assertion of the Essien’s Counsel that he had no training in banking before he took up the job as the Managing Director of the Capital Bank.
The third accused person said before taking up the job as the managing director of the Capital bank, he had worked for 18 years at ECOBANK.
Accused said he played pivotal role in the setup of ECOBANK in the Gambia.
The matter had been adjourned to June 16, 2022
William Ato Essien, the former Chief Executive Officer of defunct Capital Bank and two others are standing in the GHS620miilion offered to Capital Bank by the Bank of Ghana as liquidity support.
The two are Fitzgerald Odonkor, the former Managing Director of Capital and Tettey Nettey of MC management Service, a company owned by Essien.
They are being held for allegedly conniving and stealing GHC620 million liquidity Support offered by Bank of Ghana to the defunct Capital bank.
Accused persons have denied the charges and are on bail.
GNA