Aunty Ceci’s husby has no idea how much was allegedly stolen from his home -Accused

Patience Botwe, an 18-year old, standing trial in the Cecilia Dapaah stealing case has challenged Daniel Osei Kuffour, a complainant, to tell the Accra High Court the exact amount of money that had gone missing from their store room.

According to her, Mr. Kuffour, the husband of Cecilia Abena Dapaah, has no idea of how much money had allegedly been stolen from them because he cannot prove it.

Through Kormivi Dzotsi, her counsel, Patience courageously put before Mr. Kuffour, prosecution first witness (PW1) that he cannot put a figure to the money that had allegedly been stolen from.

PW1 was confronted under cross-examination that it was at the Tesano Police station that he and his wife, former Minister for Water and Sanitation, were informed that their monies have been stolen.

The court heard that the police did not substantiate this allegation with any core evidence and the reason at the family and juvenile court, Patience was not charged with stealing but rather intruding.

Mr. Dzotsi added that at the juvenile court the former Minister brought a large polythene bag that was full of money and claimed that it was in the possession of Patience, when she was caught by PW1.

The 81-year old Daniel Osei Kuffour responded that they didn’t know how much was stolen but Patience’s own ostentatious lifestyle in Tamale, where she jumped bail to seek refuge, gave her away.

He also could not remember the juvenile court being told that Patience was caught while having in her possession a polythene bag full of money.

What the Professional Architect remembered was that few weeks after the incident, he, together with his wife, mustered courage to go into the store room to see for themselves how the room had been ransacked.

It was then that Madam Dapaah found a polythene bag full of money, jewelleries and other things that Patience had intended to steal.

Meanwhile, Patience still maintains that there was no evidence either by the police investigator or PW1 to prove this claim.

Currently, Patience Botwe, the embattled domestic worker of Cecilia Abena Dapaah and her husband, has applied for some documents from the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) to effectively defend herself.

The application to access documents from the OSP was filed on her behalf by Kormivi Dzotsi, the 18-year old’s new legal counsel.

According to Mr. Dzotsi, access to the documents would enable Patience to confront Mr. Kuffour better, in the witness box to prove her innocence.

The counsel made this known when he was called upon by the Accra High Court for further cross examination of PW1 on Wednesday.

The court, presided over by Justice Marie-Louise Simmons was, therefore, invited to make an order to expedite access to the information, which will help the case.

“We have filed a motion with a return date, 27th June for an order for this court to procure documents from the Office of the Special Prosecutor, to enable us effectively cross examine the current witness, as well as others listed in this matter.

My lady we, therefore, pray the honourable court to indulge us deal with the motion and procure the document,” he prayed.

The court, after listening to the counsel adjourned to June 18, 2024 to determination.

A total of six individuals have been put before the court, two of whom are former house helps of the couple.

Patience and Sarah Agyei are the house helps facing conspiracy to steal and stealing.

Benjamin Sowah, Malik Dauda, Christiana Achab, Job Pomary and Yahaya Sumaila have been charged for unlawful receipt of part of the money.

Continuation of cross-examination by A5 & A6

Q: Have you by any chance had the opportunity of meeting A5 and A6?

A: My Lady, I have never seen them. I only see them in the Court and when I see them on the street, I will not recognise them.

Q: With the 1st and 2nd Accused persons being your house helps, you had the opportunity of knowing those who visited them. Can you tell this Court that A5 and A6 have ever entered your premises?

A: I wouldn’t know.

Q: Finally, you are saying that you do not know A5 and A6 and have never met them?

A: Yes my Lady.

Counsel: No more questions for the witness

Court: Cross-examination of PW1 by counsel for A1 (Patience Botwe)

Q: In which year did you and your wife employ A1?

A: It will be around 2022.

Q: And how many house helps have you had since then?

A: One person, who is still there.

Q: From 2022 till the time A1 left your house, how many security officers have you had?

A: I see one at a time. Some of them come for three days and change for others to come for three days, sometimes a day, so for that period, about three in all.

Q: How long have you lived in your Abelempke house?

A: About 20 years my Lady.

Q: Will I be right to state that you started saving money in that house the very day you moved into the house, till when the issues of the alleged stealing of your money came up?

A: Yes, my Lady.

Q: What is the total sum of United States Dollars that was stolen from your house?

A: That will be about Two hundred and ten thousand Dollars (USD210,000).

Q: How much Euros did you and your wife have in the store room of which three

hundred thousand Euros (€300,000) is alleged to have been stolen?

A: I had about three hundred thousand euros (€300,000) and that was what I could not find, that was stolen.

Q: Are you suggesting to this Court that only three hundred thousand euros (€300,000) was the amount in Euros that was in the store room?

A: Yes my Lady.

Q: How much Ghana cedis in total did you and your wife have in the store room, of which three hundred and fifty thousand Ghana cedis (GHC 350,000.00) is alleged to have been stolen?

A: My wife had for herself fifty thousand Ghana cedis (GHC 50,000.00) and three hundred and fifty (GHC 350,000.00) was the collection of monies from her siblings that was to be spent on the funeral of their mother.

Q: In which year did you notice that the two hundred thousand United State dollars               ($ 200,000) belonging to one Dorcas Wiredua, your niece, was stolen in the store room?

A: Within 2022.

Q: When you allegedly found A1 in your store room, did you find her carrying any

money at the time?

A: She couldn’t have possibly taken money away in my presence, having caught her there.

Q: You were once before the Family and Juvenile Court. Is that correct?

A: Yes my Lady.

Q: And at the Juvenile Court, you were the complainant and the witness in that matter. Is that correct?

A: Yes my Lady.

Q: Tell the Court, what charges were levelled against A1 at the Juvenile Court?

A: The charges were like intruding into someone’s premises.

Q: So you will agree with me that Al was not charged for the offence of stealing at the Juvenile Court. Is that correct?

A: Yes my Lady.

Q: You also will agree with me that at the Juvenile Court, though you and your wife made claims of some monies that were alleged to have been stolen, you had no evidence to support your claim. Is that correct?

A: It could not be conclusive so nothing came out of it and she kept denying that she had taken anything after we had discovered missing sums of money.

Q: You once had a security man at your residence whom you described as ineffective in the sense that he was always sleeping during the day time and chanting at night. Is that correct?

A: This did not come from me. It did not come from my statement.

Q: You told the Juvenile Court that Al was asked not to return to your house until your wife resolves the matter between A1 and her boyfriend. Is that not so?

A: Yes my Lady. That is true, but that did not involve the stealing. It was about differences between A1 and her ex-boyfriend.

Q: The day that you claim that you met A1 in the store room, was your security man at post?

A: Yes my Lady.

Q: Prior to that day, you told the Juvenile Court that your wife had given firm instructions that Al should not be allowed into your premises. Is that correct?

A: Should not come there, and not, should not be allowed to come there.

Q: Can you tell the Court under what circumstances Al was allowed to come into your premises within the time that you had given that firm instructions to the other house help and the security at your house?

A: My Lady, we forgot to inform the security because as they were many, it was difficult to inform all of them. So as we informed one person, we expected that the other person will tell his colleagues. So the security man who was present on the said day was not aware that we had given instructions for her not to come to the house until my wife returns from Kumasi.

Q: At the Juvenile Court, you were present when your wife brought a large polythene bag and alleged that when you caught A1 in the store room, there was large a polythene bag full of money in the possession of A1. Is that statement correct?

A: I do not remember. What I remember was that after some weeks when we mustered courage to go to the room to see what had happened, then my wife told me that there was a polythene bag full of jewelry and monies and various things still there, which A1 intended to steal, but was unable to do so because she was caught.

Q: You are the one who caught A1 in your store room. Is that correct?

A: Yes my Lady.

Q: You were at the Tesano Police station to lodge a complaint against Al before she was arraigned before the Juvenile Court. Is that correct?

A: Yes my Lady.

Q: At the Tesano Police station, you informed the Investigator that monies belonging to you and your wife had been stolen. Is that correct?

A: Yes my Lady.

Q: You will agree with me that the Investigator did not find any evidence to support the charge of stealing against A1 at the Juvenile Court. Is that correct

A: Yes my Lady. That was it.

Q: You will also agree with me that you did not even know the amount of money that you alleged to have been stolen whilst you were at the Tesano Police station?

A: Initially, we did not know because it took us a bit of courage to try to go to the room and know what was missing.

Q: I am putting it to you that even now, you have no idea of how much money belonging to you is alleged to have been stolen from you?

A: Now I know. At the Juvenile Court, A1 denied everything, but when she jumped bail and relocated to Tamale, her opulence lifestyle led to her confessing and giving details. We got to know all these details at the Police station.