ABUDU WADERA AND 10 OTHERS v. THE REPUBLIC

MENSAH-HOMIAH, JA:

INTRODUCTION

This is an appeal against the refusal of the High Court to grant an application for bail pending trial to the Appellants herein. The eleven (11) accused persons were arraigned before the Circuit Court, Koforidua, on 26th February, 2020 on charges of conspiracy to commit crime to wit mining without licence contrary to section 23(1) of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act29) & sections 99(2) (a) and 99 (3) of the Minerals and Mining (Amendment) Act 2015, (Act 900) and Mining without licence contrary to sections 92(2) (a) & 93(3) of Act 900, respectively. They have been in pre-trial detention from the time they were arraigned before the court.

FACTS AND HISTORY

The facts of this case as set out on page 9 of the record pf appeal (ROA) are not complicated. Acting on intelligence received sometime in January, 2020, the Operation Vanguard Team, led by one Captain Ekow Okyere, proceeded to a place called Wisiwisi where they arrested A1, A2 and A3 at a mining site. The complainant retrieved one locally manufactured gun with cartridges, an excavator ignition key and two excavator - monitors from the site. Upon their arrest, A1, A2 and A3 led the team to arrest A4 and A5 at their residences. A4 and A5 admitted that they are the masters of A1 to A3.

From Wisiwisi, the arresting team proceeded to another mining site at Kontompo where A9 was arrested. At Kontompo, the team removed a monitor from one of the three excavators on site. A9 led the team to the residence of A10 and A11, where they were arrested together with A6, A7 and A8. A6 to A9 admitted that A10 and A11 are their masters. A bowl containing black soil was also retrieved from the said residence. Consequently, the Accused persons were arraigned before the Circuit Court, Koforidua. Without taking their plea, the Court remanded them into prison custody.

Before the Circuit Court, an oral application for bail was made on behalf of A4 to A11, but the same was refused on 24th March, 2020. In what appears to be a repeat application with respect to A4 to A11, and a fresh application as regards A1 to A3, counsel for the Applicants moved the High Court to admit all the Applicants to bail for various reasons stated in his affidavit in support thereto. In a ruling dated 8th April, 2020, the High Court, Koforidua, refused the said application and it is against this refusal that the instant appeal has been brought.

GROUNDS OF APPEAL

In the notice of appeal filed on 14th April, 2020,