BNI invites Judge, others

By Stephen Kwabena Effah
December 21, 2o11

The Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) has invited four staff of the Judicial Service, including an Accra Circuit Court judge, to assist in its criminal investigations into the circumstances under which a cocaine exhibit mysteriously turned into baking soda.

The four, Mr. Eric Kyei Baffour, the judge who tried the case, Mr. Yussif Seidu, Deputy Court Registrar of the 28th February Courts, Mr. Daniel Nyatsidzi, and Mr. Mubarak Lawal, Clerk and Interpreter of the trial court, were expected to appear before the BNI yesterday morning.

A letter signed by the Judicial Secretary, Justice Alex B. Acheampong and dated December 19, stated that the Chief Justice Georgina Wood has granted the four staff the permission to report to the BNI Headquarters in Accra on December 20, at 9:00 to assist in the investigations.

Sources close to the invitees told the Times yesterday that the four were unable to report to the bureau as requested because they were appearing before the fact-finding committee set up by the Chief Justice to probe the incident.

Mr. George Asamani, counsel for Mr. Nyatsidzi, told the Times after the committee ended its public hearing yesterday that they had written to the BNI to give them a new date since it was impossible to have appeared when they were before the C.J. Committee.

On his part, Mr. Robert Kinsley Yeboah counsel for said they were going to meet with the BNI yesterday afternoon after the committee sitting.

The BNI investigations was prompted by a directive from Vice President John Mahama following the revelation by an Accra Circuit Court that a total of 1,020 grammes of tested cocaine tendered as evidence in court turned into sodium bicarbonate.

The substance, valued at 44,000 dollars which was initially tested as cocaine at the police forensic laboratory, later turned into baking soda upon a re-test. This led to the discharge of Nana Ama Martins who was being tried for possessing the drug without lawful authority last Tuesday.