TWO BRITONS FREED OF COCAINE OFFENCES

The Supreme Court of Ghana has freed two Britons who were convicted for narcotic drug offences in October 2004.
The two were sentenced to 20 years’ hard labour by the Accra High Court for shipping 588.33 kilogrammes of cocaine into the country but walked out of the Supreme Court as free men today.
The Supreme Court by a unanimous decision upheld the appeal of David J. Logan and Frank David Laverick, both 45.
It thus quashed and set aside the High Court conviction which had kept them in prison for more than two years.
The court was constituted by a five-member panel presided over by Ms Sophia Akuffo with the members being Mr Justice Stephen Allan Brobbey, Mr Justice Julius Ansah, Mr Justice R.T. Aninakwa and Ms Sophia Adinyira.
The two men were among six persons, who were each sentenced to 20 years by the Accra High Court on October 27, 2006 for conspiracy, dealing in narcotic substances and possession of narcotic substance.
The rest of the convicts who are serving their sentences are Kevin Dinsdale Gorman, a 61-year-old American, Mohammed Ibrahim Kamil, 38, a Ghanaian car dealer, Alan Hodgson, 47, also a British and Sven Herb, 47, a German.
They were arrested by the security agencies in a house at Tema Community 10 where the substances were found concealed behind a mirror on January 7, 2004.
All six of them pleaded not guilty to two counts of engaging in criminal conspiracy to commit an offence relating to narcotic drugs and possessing narcotic drugs without authority.
Gorman, Kamil and Herb pleaded not guilty to additional charge of importating narcotic drugs and possessing narcotic drugs without licence from the Ministry of Health. Gorman further faced a count of using his property for keeping narcotic drugs, to which he pleaed not guilty.
A seventh accomplice, Craig Alexander Pinnick, a British, who absconded was later arrested and arraigned.
After their sentence by the High Court, Logan and Laverick went on appeal at the Court of Appeal which by a 2-1 majority decision upheld the High Court decision.
In December 2006, they further went to the highest court on the grounds that their convictions were not supported having regard to the evidence adduced at the trial.
The Supreme Court held that the trial court was wrong in ruling that a prima facie case had been established against them.
It said that in the light of the evidence at the time of the trial the two men should not have been called at all to even open their defence.
According to the court when they eventually opened their defence, the appellants provided credible evidence to establish their innocence.
Similarly, the court held that the Court of Appeal was also wrong in affirming the lower court decision because there was no evidence at the trial.
The Supreme Court said the Court of Appeal erred in shifting the burden of proof on the appellants.
An elated Mr Addo Atuah, counsel for the appellants, who could not hide his feelings described the decision as a victory for the rule of law and good governance.
He said that had become necessary because the right atmosphere had been created to embolden judges of the courts to dispense justice.