A 38-year-old bailiff, Kojo Budu Jackson, has been sentenced to four years in prison with hard labour by an Accra Circuit Court for attempting to commit fraud with forged court documents bearing the signature of a retired judge.

Jackson was found to have falsified a district court order and a certificate of divorce supposedly issued by a former magistrate of the Ejisu District Court in the Ashanti Region.

Initially, Jackson pleaded not guilty to the charge of forging a judicial service document. However, at last Tuesday’s hearing, he changed his plea to guilty just as the prosecution was about to start presenting its case, leading to his conviction.

Alongside the custodial sentence, the court imposed a fine of 200 penalty units, equivalent to GH₵2,400. Failure to pay the fine within one month of sentencing would result in an additional year of imprisonment.

Case background

According to Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Emmanuel Nyamekye, the case began in June 2024 when the Judicial Secretary lodged a complaint with the Ghana Police Service, reporting that Jackson and some accomplices were forging official court documents, including marriage and divorce certificates and court orders.

At that time, Jackson was employed as a private bailiff at the Ejisu District Court in the Ashanti Region.

Following the complaint, police placed Jackson under surveillance and arrested him on August 13, 2024. A search of his residence uncovered various documents, including divorce affidavits and a forged Certificate of Divorce.

During interrogation, Jackson confessed, explaining that he committed the act because he was struggling financially and needed to pay his rent.

Further investigation confirmed that the forged divorce certificate, dated May 8, 2024, was made to appear as if issued by the retired Ejisu magistrate.

Police established that Jackson had scanned the judge’s signature, digitally inserted it into the document and affixed the registrar’s official stamp.

The investigations also showed that other documents discovered in Jackson’s possession were similarly forged.