A High Court in Accra has ruled that controversial religious figure Patricia Asiedua Asiamah, widely known as Nana Agradaa, and three co-defendants must open their defense in a criminal case involving the alleged non-consensual dissemination of explicit images.
The order follows the court’s dismissal of a “submission of no case” motion filed by Agradaa’s legal counsel. Presiding over the matter on Monday, the judge directed prison authorities to ensure Agradaa is present at the next court appearance, after she failed to show due to her current incarceration.
Agradaa, founder of Heaven Way Champion International Ministry, is presently serving a 15-year sentence at Nsawam Prison, following her conviction in a separate case involving charlatanic advertisement and defrauding by false pretence.
The judge set July 30, 2025, at 1:00 p.m. for a Case Management Conference and ordered all witness statements to be filed within two weeks. Counsel for Agradaa, Richard Adade Baffour, had appealed for an adjournment of the ruling until his client could be present, but the court declined.
Background
Agradaa and her co-accused — Enock Owusu Kissi, 33; Charles Omane, also known as One Gig, 39; and Emmanuel Kofi Gyasi, 47 — are facing charges stemming from the alleged distribution of nude images of a Christian prophet, Emmanuel Appiah Fomum. The charges, filed under Ghana’s Cybersecurity Act, 2020 (Act 1038), include possession of obscene material and the unlawful sharing of intimate images.
According to prosecutors, the incident occurred during a live broadcast of Agradaa’s talk show Yi Wasum on her then television network, Thunder TV (now rebranded as Today’s TV). The program, streamed concurrently on YouTube and Facebook, featured Agradaa allegedly displaying explicit images of Prophet Fomum, which were subsequently sent via WhatsApp to a third party.
Prosecutors allege that her co-defendants, serving as panelists on the show, made disparaging remarks about the prophet’s nudity during the broadcast. The case was initially dismissed by a Circuit Court, but was refiled at the High Court by state prosecutors.
The accused are scheduled to return to court on July 30 to begin their formal defense.
Source:TheDotNews