I didn't know vessel was to cart coke....Owner (Unpublished Article)

By William Yaw Owusu

Thursday November 8, 2007
Joseph Kojo Dawson, owner of M.V. Benjamin, the vessel that was used to import 77 parcels of cocaine into the country has denied that he knew the vessel was sailing to cart cocaine from the high seas.

He also refuted claims by the prosecution that Sheriff Asem Darke, now at large, who chartered the vessel had promised to pay the hiring fee after the cocaine had been sold.
Dawson, charged with using his property for narcotic offences, was answering questions under cross-examination by the prosecution, led by Principal State Attorney Stella Badu, at an Accra Fast Track High Court yesterday.

He is charged with four others over the importation of the narcotic drug.

Dawson and the others - Isaac Arhin, 40, Phillip Bruce Arhin, 49, a mechanic, Cui Xian Li, 49, a vessel engineer and Luo Yui Xing, 49, both Chinese - were on board the MV Benjamin vessel that brought the narcotic drug package.

The sixth accused person, Pak Bok Sil, a Korean vessel engineer, who was jointly charged with them, was acquitted and discharged by the court for lack of evidence.

The five men have been charged for their alleged roles in the importation of the cocaine to the Tema Port in April last year.

Sheriff, popularly called “Limping Man,” allegedly chartered the vessel from Dawson at 150,000 dollars.

Isaac Arhin, Phillip Arhin, Cui and Luo have all pleaded not guilty to two counts of engaging in prohibited business as related to narcotic drugs and possessing narcotic drugs unlawfully.

The prosecution called 13 witnesses after which the accused persons filed a submission of ‘no case’ because they believed the prosecution had failed to establish a case against them, but their application was rejected by the court.

Dawson told the court that they signed the charter agreement for Sheriff to use the vessel to tow his distressed vessel in Conakry Guinea'. “I was not even aware when the vessel sailed from the Takoradi Port on March 9, 2006”, he said.

He said it was his company, Dashment Limited, which acted as agents of the vessel and claimed that the company ceased to be agents when Sheriff chartered the vessel on February 6, 2006 contrary to the prosecution’s assertion that the vessel's agents never changed when Sheriff took over.

Dawson said that under the agreement, the vessel was to be rehabilitated by Sheriff before it sailed but Dashment Company was responsible for the payment of expenses incurred by the M.V. Benjamin whilst at the Port. “I was expecting Sheriff to inform me that he was sailing the vessel but he did not”, he said

The prosecution then showed the accused a photograph of Sheriff whom he admitted he knew. He however told the court that he did not know Killer, a Korean suspected to have also played a role in the importation of the narcotic substance.

He said that he made his father sign the charter agreement with Sheriff because his father was the person who had signed the hire-purchase agreement, even though he had described his father as “just an adviser” of the company in his earlier submission.

When the prosecution submitted that the name that Sheriff used in the agreement was Evans Charwetey Tsekobi and not Asem Darke, Dawson replied: “Sheriff and Bae came to us with the agreement and it was signed.”