Prosecution amends charges against manager of company

The prosecution has amended charges preferred against XueHui, a manager of Poly Changda Engineering Company, who inflicted knife wounds on Issac Boateng, a Ghanaian concrete mixture operator.

Last week, the prosecution preferred fresh charges of attempted murder against Xue, when he first appeared before a Sekondi District Court, for slashing the neck of Boateng with a flip knife.

However, on Tuesday, the prosecution replaced the previous charges with fresh ones; the use of an offensive weapon and causing harm.

Meanwhile, the case has been transferred from the Sekondi District Court after the completion of committal proceedings, to the Takoradi Circuit Court ‘A,’ for a full trial.

At that court presided over by Michael Ampadu, on Tuesday, Xue pleaded not guilty to the two charges.

Xue was granted GHC50,000 bail to re-appear on Tuesday, November 22, 2022, and also asked to deposit his passport with the registrar.

This was after the counsel for the accused, Akpene Darko Cobbinah, had told the court that the charges were bailable, and that the accused, who was assisting in the construction of apartment for the Ministry of Defence, had been in police custody since September 28, 2022.

Mr Cobbinah said the facts of the case as presented by the prosecution was inaccurate, telling the court that what happened was accidental and not intentional.

Lead counsel for the accused, Eric BrenyaOtchere, pleaded with the court to give the accused some time to pay the GH¢50,000, and the accused was asked to pay the money within seven days.

The case of the prosecution was that in August, 2022, Xue reported the behaviour of Boateng to his foreman, Wisdom Akpalu, for not adhering to safety protocols at work and intended to dismiss him.

On September 27, 2022, Boateng went to work at Kweikuma at about 7am and closed at 3pm, instead of 5pm, without permission from the accused and his (Boateng’s) foreman.

The next day, while Boateng was working at the site accused confronted him as to why he closed from work at 3pm the previous day.

Xue told Boateng that, he had been dismissed from work and Boateng asked the accused to pay him off.

Prosecution said without any provocation, Xue came out of his office, and with a flip knife slashed Boateng’s neck, in an attempt to murder the complainant.

The court heard that Boateng, who suffered a deep cut with blood oozing from his neck, reported the case to the police at Adiembra, near Sekondi.

Prosecution said the police issued a medical report form to the complainant to attend hospital, and on September 29, 2022, the accused reported the case to the police at Adiembra, in the company of an interpreter, Job Issifu.