The judge hearing the case in which En Huang, also known as Aisha Huang, has been accused of facilitating and engaging in illegal mining in Ghana, has warned the accused not to cry in court again.

“Today should be the last time you cry in my court. This is disrespectful to the court. If you want to cry, cry in prison before you come.

This question is so harmless,” Justice Lydia Osei Marfo told Aisha Huang who was crying for the second time in the witness box since she opened her defence on Monday, July 10, 2022.

What happened?

Aisha Huang, a Chinese national who has opened her defence in the case was being cross-examined by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Yvonne Atakora Obuobisa on Monday (July 24) when she broke down in tears.

The DPP had confronted Aisha Huang about her return to Ghana after the deportation.

“You came back to Ghana so you could continue your illegal activity in Ghana isn’t it” the DPP queried Aisha Huang.

But in her response, Aisha Huang told the court that after her deportation, she was never told that she could not return to Ghana again adding: “So after staying in China for a long time, I thought it was okay for me to return that’s why I came back."

She further added that she specifically went to Tamale upon her second arrival just to “chase” people owing her.

Justice Lydia Osei Marfo allowed the DPP to continue the cross-examination.

The case has been adjourned to July 25, 2023.

Not guilty

En 'Aisha' Huang, has been accused of being in the thick of affairs of galamsey, especially in the Ashanti Region.

She was deported from Ghana in 2018, after the Attorney-General decided to discontinue her trial in which she was accused of engaging in small-scale mining without licence.

However, she was said to have sneaked back into Ghana to allegedly engage in the same activities for which she was deported.

The A-G, Godfred Yeboah Dame, then decided to prosecute her for the alleged crimes before her deportation and new ones committed since her re-entry into Ghana.

It is the case of the prosecution that Aisha had an illegal mining concession at Bepotenten in the Amansie West District in the Ashanti Region and also operated a mining support services company.

She has pleaded not guilty to undertaking a mining operation without a licence, facilitating the participation of persons engaged in a mining operation, the illegal employment of foreigners and entering Ghana while prohibited from re-entry.