By William Yaw Owusu
Thursday January 18, 2007
The only people who knew about the contents of the 77 parcels on the board the MV Benjamin vessel in the Naval Patrol escaped before the Naval Patrol team of the got to the vessel.
The Chief Engineer and the Captain whose names were not given did not disclose the contents until James Kingsley Inkoom, the cook on the vessel enquired about it from the Chief Engineer at the breakwaters of the Port before he said it was cocaine.
Inkoom was testifying in the trial of Joseph Kojo Dawson, 34, the vessel owner and five others including a Korean and two Chinese for their roles in the missing cocaine at the Tema Port at the Fast Track High Court in Accra yesterday.
The others are Pak Bok Sil, a Korean Engineer, Isaac Arhin, 49, Phillip Bruce Arhin, 49, a mechanic and Cui Xian Li, 44, a vessel engineer and Luo Yui Xing, 49, both Chinese.
Dawson has pleaded not guilty to using his property for narcotic offences whiles Bok Sil pleaded not guilty to one account of engaging in prohibited business relating to narcotic drugs.
Isaac Arhin, Bruce Arhin, Li and Xing have all pleaded not guilty to two counts of engaging in a prohibited business relating to narcotic drugs and possessing of narcotic drugs without lawful authority.
Giving a vivid account of what transpired during the voyage, Arhin told the court that he worked for Dashment Fishing Company Limited ,owners of the MV Benjamin vessel between 2002 and 2004 but had to stop because his wife died.
He said he knows Isaac Arhin, Bruce Arhin, Li and Xing and added that “Dawson was the Director of our company but I do not know Bok Sil”.
Inkoom who is the second Prosecution witness (PW2) in the case said on March 6, 2006, he received a call from Isaac Arhin who told him to come to Takoradi for a job.
“I got to the vessel at the Takoradi Harbour at 7am on March 7, 2006, and met Isaac Arhin, Bruce Arhin and Li, chipping and painting the vessel”.
The following day the Chief Engineer and the Captain came with Xing and introduced him as the person who will help me in the kitchen. I prepared food for them and they all ate”.
PW2 said the chief Engineer later on that day told him that they were taking the vessel on trial to Tema.
‘We sailed for almost two weeks but we were still not in Tema so I asked the Chief Engineer where we were going to and he replied that we were going for engine parts”.
“After about a week, a small boat got closer to us and they started throwing some things into our vessel. The things are like cartons of fish in sacks”.
We were then asked to pack them in the hatch of our vessel. I asked Isaac Arhin about the contents but he only said there 77 in number and did not mention to me what were in it.
After about three weeks, Inkoom said they arrived at the Tema Port breakwaters at about 1:30am, anchored, and he went to sleep.
“In my sleep I heard an unusual noise so I woke up and saw a canoe ducked by our side .They entered our vessel, opened the hatch and packed what we brought from the high seas”.
I also saw another canoe going round our vessel with three men in it and one of them was holding a gun. The chief Engineer and the captain were also holding guns”.
The witness told the court that the Chief Engineer and the captain later left the vessel and came back at 5pm for their meal.
‘It was then that I asked the chief Engineer about the about the contents of what was carted away by the two canoes and he said it was cocaine.
“The two of them asked me to clear the mess on the vessel and said they were going to bring more food”.
At about 6am the following day the Navy boat stormed our vessel and brought us to the Tema Port and were later joined by officials from the Narcotics Control Board (NACOB)
He said during the search Bruce Arhin brought a harmer which they used to break the padlock to the hatch of the vessel where only one out of the 77 parcels was found.
“When the parcel was opened, there were 30 slabs packed in the shape of a video cassette. A field test conducted by the NACOB officials tested positive for cocaine”.
He told the court that during cross examination that he was not involved in the main work an the vessel saying “I was only engaged as a cook and Dawson was not on the vessel”
Due to ethical consideration, Mr. Osei Owusu, counsel for Isaac Arhin and Bruce Arhin could not cross examine Inkoom because the witness was his client during the initial sages of the case
The court presided over by Mr. Justice Annin Yeboah of the court of Appeal then adjourned proceedings until January 24, to enable Isaac Arhin and Bruce Arhin to engage the services of new counsel to handle the cross examination.
Earlier the first PW, Detective Corporal Edward Yaw Asante was crossed examined by Li Xing who did not have counsel.
Speaking through an interpreter, the two Chinese denied knowledge about the contents of the parcel but the witness insisted that they knew about the contents and it was Xing who led the search team of which he was part, to retrieve the only parcel from the hatch of the vessel
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