A superintendent of the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS), David Essien has told an Accra High Court that Aisha Huang used a forged marriage certificate to obtain an indefinite residence permit.

A forged Ghanaian passport is also said to have been attached to the application that culminated in the grant of the permit.

Supt. Essien said it was the detection of this situation that led the Immigration Service to revoke her permit and repatriate her out of the country.

The issue of how Aisha Huang left Ghana in 2018 remains a thorny matter. State prosecutors have previously told an Accra Circuit Court she fled the country.

This was a position contrary to what a government official had claimed.

Former Senior Minister Yaw Osafo Marfo had stated that was in furtherance of a business transaction with the Chinese Government.

Supt. Essien is the Attorney General’s second witness in the case in which the Chinese National is accused of engaging in illegal mining.

He started his testimony by telling the court he was tasked to investigate the accused person following a publication on Myjoyonline.com and another news portal.

The stories he said made serious allegations of illegal mining against the Chinese National. Supt Essien said he was asked to check her immigration status and the situation on the ground with regard to the allegation.

He revealed he found out that she had an indefinite residence permit. During cross-examination, lead Counsel for Aisha Huang Nkrabeah Effah Dartey asked the Immigration officer whether his probe was only regarding her immigration status.

Supt Essien replied it bothered him as well as the allegations regarding the illegal mining.

He then gave the following details about her repatriation.

“When we examined the passport, she was on an indefinite residence permit which was granted to her based on her supposed marriage to a Ghanaian known as Anthony Fabian.

However, investigations conducted by the GIS established that the accused used a forged marriage certificate and forged ghana passport in support of her application for the indefinite residence permit.

As a result of this, the Comptroller-General revoked the indefinite residence permit on grounds of fraudulent misrepresentation in accordance which led to her subsequent repartition on December 19, 2018.“

Mr Dartey told the court he will continue with his cross-examination after conferring with his client.

It is worth noting that the trial on Monday did not commence without controversy.

Aisha Huang told the Court she could not understand an interpreter who had been tasked to assist her. A new interpreter was brought to continue with that task.

The case is back in Court on Tuesday, November 15.