Court orders Police to give back Shatta Wale his phone

Multiple award winning Dancehall artiste and one of Ghana’s biggest musicians, Charles Nii Armah Mensah popularly known as Shatta Wale had some victory in court yesterday when the Ghana Police Service was ordered to return to him his mobile phone that had been in their custody since his arrest, and even when he had been granted bail.

The Court, Accra Circuit Court 4, presided over by Judge Emmanuel Essandor, also ordered that the phones of the accused accomplices of Shata Wale, Kojo Owusu Koranteng, Shatta’s personal assistant, Eric Vanetor, a graphic designer and Iddrisu Yussif, a beautician  should also be given back their phones.

This was after a rather interesting tussle between Jerry Avenorgbo, lawyer for Shatta Wale and has accused mates on one side and prosecutor in the matter, Chief Inspector Dennis Terpketey on the other side.

Jerry Avenorgbo had argued that keeping the phones was a breach of the fundamental human rights of  his clients and that per the nature of their work  they depend mainly on the use of their mobile phones.

He said whatever supposed evidence prosecution was seeking for on the pones in relation to the substangive case was already public knowledge and has even gone viral on social media so there was no need to continue to keep the phones.

Prosecution however argued the phones should still be kept for further investigations into the case.

He further argued that, the Police going through phones would result in a breach of their privacy as all information needed for investigations are available on social media.

The Prosecutor, Chief Inspector Dennis Terkpetey, disclosed that the Police are searching for a suspect who is on the run.

He noted that the suspect’s arrest could change the facts of the case as new information has emerged with regards to the case and prayed the court for more time to allow his team to file its documents.

The Judge ruled that the phones be returned to the accused persons.

Case was adjourned o December 7.

Shatta had spent some  five days on remand at the Ankaful Prison over the case but was granted a self-recognisance bail in the sum of GHc100,000 and is to reappear in court on November 9.

There were wild jubilation by thousands of his fans who had gathered around the court environs when he was granted bail.

Though Shatta was on a self recognisance bail, he did not go home after the hearing and meeting the bail conditions but stayed on at the Regional Police Command to ensure his three friends also met their bail conditions.

Shatta Wale is facing charges of publication of false news while his accomplices are facing the court for abetment.

He had allegedly fabricated a story that he had been shot and receiving treatment, which turned out to be a hoax.