The prosecution in the ongoing ambulance trial has described claims by Richard Jakpa that he provided documents to the Attorney General’s office to help in the prosecution of Dr Cassiel Ato Forson as false.
Richard Jakpa has accused the Attorney General of engaging him at odd hours to implicate Dr Ato Forson.
He testified in court that the Attorney General assured him that, for his cooperation, he (Richard Jakpa) would be made to go free at the ruling on submission of the case.
Richard Jakpa claims that, based on these assurances, he cooperated and provided documents to support the case of the Attorney General against Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson.
But during cross-examination by the prosecution, Director of Public Prosecutions, Yvonne Attakora-Obuobisa, suggested to Richard Jakpa that the claims were untrue.
The director of public prosecution pointed out to Richard Japka that the claim the AG relied on documents he (Richard Jakpa) sent to the Attorney General for the purpose of prosecuting Ato Forson was untrue.
Richard Jakpa, in his testimony before the court, claimed that the Attorney General verbally requested some documents at the house of Justice Kulendi, which he complied with and sent via WhatsApp in July 2022.
But the director of public prosecutions, while questioning Richard Jakpa, suggested that this cannot be true as the Attorney General, on February 29, 2022, five months earlier, had submitted all the documents he was going to rely on to the court and served all parties, including the ones Jakpa sent to him.
“The AG never relied on any document you gave him because he had already disclosed documents he was going to rely on to conduct his case, and in any case, he did not even acknowledge whatever document you sent. He completely disregarded them. Isn’t that the case?” Ms. Attakora-Obuobisa queried Richard Jakpa under cross-examination.
Richard Jakpa, however, explained that even though it is true that the Attorney General filed his disclosures and he (Jakpa) also sent some documents to him, it is immaterial which of the two came first.
In responding to claims that the Attorney General did not acknowledge the documents, he clarified that it was because the request was made orally and the documents were sent electronically in the presence of Godfred Dame, who acknowledged them in person.
On Richard Jakpa’s claim that the Attorney General assured him of his freedom during the ruling on the submission of no case, the prosecution pointed to the timing of filing their response to the submission of no case in an attempt to disprove the claim.
Director of Public Prosecutions, Yvonne Attakora-Obuobisa, pointed out to Richard Jakpa that, while he claims Godfred Dame made this promise on March 29, 2023, the Attorney General had two weeks prior, on March 12, 2023, filed an opposition to the submission of no case, arguing that the accused had a question to answer.
Ms. Attakora Obuobisa stated that it cannot be true that the Attorney General, who opposed the submission of no case, will, two weeks after filing his response, assure Richard Jakpa that he will not do the same to make him (Jakpa) go free.
Richard Jakpa, however, responded that the Attorney General had indeed assured him that he was not going to oppose his submission of a no-case application.
