Court admits WhatsApp chats between Jakpa and AG into evidence in ambulance trial

The High Court in Accra has admitted full WhatsApp messages between Richard Jakpa, the third accused in the ongoing ambulance procurement trial, and Attorney-General Godfred Yeboah Dame into evidence.

Justice Afia Serwaa Asare-Botwe noted that the court had previously accepted WhatsApp chats from Jakpa, thus could not reject the complete conversation presented by the prosecution.

However, she emphasised that the court retains the right to determine the weight of the evidence.

During the proceedings on Tuesday, June 18, Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Yvonne Atakora Obuobisa highlighted the significant number of messages sent by Mr Jakpa compared to the limited responses from the Attorney-General.

The DPP sought to introduce all of Mr Jakpa's WhatsApp messages into evidence.

Mr Jakpa admitted that he introduced himself to the Attorney-General before the trial and obtained the Justice Minister's contact information through his cousin, Supreme Court Judge Justice Yonny Kulendi.

Under cross-examination, he acknowledged that the messages presented in court did not represent the entire conversation but were selectively chosen for their relevance to his case.

Mr Thaddeus Sory, counsel for Mr Jakpa, objected to the submission of the full WhatsApp conversation, arguing that the defence needed more time to review the messages thoroughly.

Previously, the court had admitted a 16-minute recorded phone conversation between Mr Dame and the third accused, where the Attorney-General was accused of witness tampering by Jakpa and others involved in the case.

The court earlier dismissed an apllication for a mistrial by Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson and his legal team.

The trial judge ruled that the Minority Leader had not demonstrated any statutory provisions that warrant a mistrial or an enquiry into the Attorney General's affairs.

On Monday, June 3rd, Dr. Ato Forson filed a supplementary affidavit in support of his motion for an order of mistrial, an injunction, and/or a stay of proceedings in the ongoing case against him and two others.

Lawyers for the Ajumako-Enyan-Esiam legislator cited a leaked tape between the Attorney General, Godfred Yeboah Dame, and the third accused, Richard Jakpa. They alleged that the tape depicted the Attorney General attempting to coach the third accused to implicate Dr. Ato Forson in the trial.