The Court of Appeal has overturned the conviction of former Assembly Member for Denkyira Obuasi, William Baah. He had been serving a life sentence for allegedly abetting the murder of Major Maxwell Adam Mahama.
A three-member panel delivered a unanimous judgment on the matter. The panel ruled that the original trial contained serious errors.
The judges said the trial judge, Justice Mariama Owusu, misdirected the jury during the High Court trial. They explained that this misdirection led to a wrongful guilty verdict.
The court stated that the misdirection affected the outcome of the case. The judges believed the jury would not have found Baah guilty if they had received proper instructions.
The Court of Appeal also found another major problem with the trial. They held that the High Court relied on statements that should not have been used.
According to the judges, the High Court used cautioned statements from two accused persons. These statements wrongly implicated Baah in the crime.
The panel said the trial judge should have ignored the incriminating statements. They explained that the law did not allow those statements to be used against Baah.
The judges added that these errors were too serious to overlook. They concluded that the mistakes were enough to invalidate the entire conviction.
The Court of Appeal therefore overturned the guilty verdict. They also set aside the life sentence that had been imposed on Baah.
Background to the case shows how the matter began. The events leading to the conviction took place many years before the appeal.
In January 2024, a seven-member jury at the High Court in Accra delivered the initial verdict. The jury found William Baah and 11 others guilty in connection with the 2017 mob lynching of Major Mahama.
Baah was convicted of abetment of murder by the High Court. The case generated widespread public interest at the time.
Eleven other accused persons were convicted of conspiracy to commit murder. The group included individuals such as Bernard Asamoah and Kofi Nyame.
Others like Akwasi Baah and Kwame Tuffuor were also found guilty. They were accused of playing roles in the violent incident.
Eight of the convicted persons were additionally found guilty of murder. Their actions were considered by the jury to have directly caused Major Mahama’s death.
Two accused persons, Bismark Donkor and Bismarck Abanga, were found not guilty. They were therefore acquitted and discharged.
The Court of Appeal decision has now changed the outcome of the case for Baah. The ruling brings a major shift to the long-running legal matter.
Source : Citinewsroom.com
