Lawyers for popular reggae musician Lester Ekow Micah have expressed doubts about the laboratory results on the substance found at the residence of the accused.
According to Andrew Kudzo Vortia, counsel for the accused, per the volume of substance used for the test, the results could not be “conclusive enough”.
He stated that the minutest sample used for the test of the substance was not the true representation of the drug.
War of Methods
The lawyer was emphatic that the Square Root Method used for the laboratory analysis of the substance was questionable.
He stated that if Ms Mercy Agyapong, a government analyst at the Forensic Laboratory of the Ghana Police Service, had used other methods—among others, the Random Sampling Method—she would not have arrived at the result she had.
This was after Ms Agyapong, who during cross-examination by Mr Vortia, had told the court that she took 1mm per ml of the 127grams substance for testing and that it proved positive for cannabis.
She explained to the court presided over by Aboagye Tandoh that she dealt in weights and not in volumes and that there was no other method she could have used to arrive at a different result.
The government analyst indicated that on receipt of the substance, the envelope containing the dried leaves had the inscription, “Grace”—indicative of the fact that the substance was sealed in the presence of an independent witness.
Earlier, Ms Agyapong had said the substance which was handed to her in a sealed brown envelope was labelled, “the Republic vrs Ekow Micah”.
The witness said after the substance tested positive for cannabis, she wrote a report on it and submitted same to the “submitting agency”, insisting that the compressed substance weighed 127 grams.
Witnesses
Meanwhile, the prosecution at the sitting yesterday closed its case in respect of the trial.
Ms Agyapong was the last of three witnesses the prosecution had used to advance its case against the reggae musician of “Me Si Wu Hemaa” fame.
Previously D/Cprls Evans Adu and Richard Ayayi, both from the Airport Police Station, had testified in the trial.
Fate Hangs
Even though the prosecution has closed its case, the trial judge is yet to take a decision as to whether or not a prima facie case had been made against the musician who looked rather calm all through the trial.
The reggae musician has denied the charge of possessing narcotic drugs without lawful authority and has since been on remand at the Airport Police Station.
Mr Tandoh is set to take a decision on Mr Vortia’s motion seeking to recall one of the earlier two witnesses on Monday, October 19, 2015.
Arrest
The accused who wears dreadlocks was arrested on August 4 by the Airport Police over an alleged extortion case currently in another Circuit Court.
The prosecution alleged that on the following day, at about 11:30 am, the Police and the accused person visited Micah’s house to conduct a search and in the process, a quantity of dried leaves suspected to be Indian hemp was found concealed in Micah’s bag.
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