An attempt by America’s Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) and the Ghana Police to arrest a Ghanaian accountant and extradite him to the United States to testify in a tax offence case against his former employer has been foiled by an Accra High Court. The Ghanaian, Mr Kodjo Djimini, flew back home after receiving death threats from his former employers because the FBI had refused to give him protection as a prosecution witness. He was, however, arrested by the police and detained at the Police Headquarters in a purported execution of an arrest warrant allegedly obtained from the US. The police said that they received a "red alert" warrant from a court in the USA for the extradition of the accountant and that due process had to be followed, since Ghana and the USA had a common extradition agreement. The Deputy Director of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service, DCOP Patrick Timbillah, described as false claims by Djimini that he was arrested without a warrant. DCOP Timbillah said Djimini had to be located and sent to court to be granted bail to enable the extradition process to be completed. Following a swift motion ex-parte for an order of Habeas Corpus filed by Alhaji Musah Ahmed on behalf of Mr Djimini against the Attorney-General, the Inspector General of Police (IGP) and the Director of the CID for his arrest and detention without bail or trial on June 21, 2007, the court, on June 22, 2007, ordered his release. The court ordered the defendants to produce Mr Djimini on June 25 to show why he was being detained and when the Attorney-General obliged, the court was not convinced as to why the applicant was being detained. In his affidavit in support of the motion, Mr Djimini said he was a Ghanaian by birth and nationality and that prior to his arrival in Ghana recently, he was resident in the USA and engaged in the lawful pursuit of his profession as an accountant. He said back in the USA, he worked for several companies, one of which was later found to have engaged in tax-related offences. "Subsequently, I was invited as a former accountant of the said company to testify on behalf of the prosecution against the said company for tax-related charges," he said. According to him, he agreed and asked for witness protection from the FBI. However, it became obvious that they were unable to give him protection after several threatening calls were received by him that he risked his life if he went to testify. Mr Djimini said that all efforts to get the FBI to protect him yielded no results, leaving him with no option but to leave the USA for Ghana. He said that he was arrested by the Deputy Director of CID under the instructions of the IGP and detained at the Police Headquarters in a purported execution of an arrest warrant obtained from the USA. "I have not been served with any process or order from any court. That I am not aware of any lawful reason for my detention at the Police Headquarters and that the true object of my extradition is to punish me for no reason at all," he said. According to him, his arrest and detention were unlawful as no prima facie case had been made against him, while there was no evidence whatsoever to link him to any offence allegedly committed in the USA. He said since the extradition being sought against him was not in good faith, not in the interest of justice with regard to the death threats against him in the USA, the court could order his release from police cells. At the last hearing of the case, there was no representation from the Attorney-General's Department and, therefore, the case was adjourned until July 26, 2007. Source: Daily Graphic