5 Pirates Fined GH�30,000

The Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) Sanitation and Motor Court at Abeka in Accra, presided over by Mr. Emmanuel Antwi-Barima has fined five persons GH�6,000 each totaling GH�30,000, or in default serve a jail term of two years each for pirating. The suspects�Bernard Amakye, Awal Mohammed, Owusu Gabriel, Andy Obeng and Maxwell Opoku�were found guilty of reproducing and distributing audio visual works contrary to Section 42 (1) of the Copyright Act 690/2005. According to the prosecution, the complainant, Eric Tetteh, a member of the Ghana Musical Rights Organisation (GHAMRO) Taskforce together with some police officers arrested the suspects for reproducing and distributing art works of artistes including Sarkodie, Guru and R2Bees. The other artistes whose songs were being pirated by the suspects were Hannah Marfo, Akua Serwaa and Daddy Lumba. The prosecution told the court that on April 5, 2013 the complainant with his taskforce proceeded to Osu, La, 37 Lorry Station and its environs and found the convicts at their respective locations with laptops and other devices reproducing and distributing songs for commercial purposes without authorisation. Prosecution noted that the suspects were consequently arrested and brought to the Tesano Police Station where after investigations they were charged with the offence and arraigned before court. In his judgment, the presiding judge ordered that the equipment: laptop computers, loud speakers which were seized from the suspects upon their arrest and tended in as evidence be destroyed, something which was duly burnt into ashes under the supervision of the Court�s Registrar and the prosecutor of the case.