Three of the 12 convicted persons in the murder of Major Maxwell Mahama have decided to appeal the conviction and sentence, their counsel, Theophilus Kafui Donkor, has said.
In a interview with Accra-based Joy FM on Tuesday [Jan 30, 2024], he said his clients believed the judge misdirected the jury and influenced the verdict.
He explained the convicts have instructed him to appeal the decision at a higher level.
“My clients are not satisfied with the directions that the judge gave to the jury so they have instructed me to appeal the decision on their behalf. They believe strongly that they have a good case in this matter.,” he said.
Mr Donkor stated that the appeal will come on the back of their belief that the judge did not direct the jury to the applicable law while determining the verdict of the case.
He added that during the entire process, they had filed countless appeals some of which were still pending.
Therefore, all the outstanding appeals, the lawyer said, will be combined into a composite appeal.
Making reference to set precedent, he said that in order for someone to be convicted on the charge of conspiracy, it had to be proven that they had prior agreement and that the accused person had agreed to commit the crime.
He, therefore, argued that with the case in question, the prosecution failed to provide evidence that the 12 convicts had any prior agreement of killing Major Mahama.
Mr Donkor also questioned how two individuals were acquitted after there was an allegation of 14 people meeting to plan the killing.
