An Asokwa District Court, on Monday, discharged a KNUST lecturer standing trial for alleged kidnapping his wife; a staff of the Lands Commission.

Dr. Wilberforce Nkrumah Aggrey was however rearrested soon after gaining his freedom.

He has been in police custody since his arrest on October 6, 2021, for his alleged involvement in the disappearance of his wife, Rhodaline Amoah-Darko.

The 32-year-old Rhodaline, a Senior Lands Administrative Officer, has been missing since August 30, 2021.

Preliminary police investigations linked Dr. Aggrey of the Petroleum Department of KNUST to an authored kidnapping note. He is also accused of using his wife’s phone to distribute text messages from a spot near his KNUST campus home.

For the first time in several months, he was given some reprieve as he gained freedom to move around without the usual handcuffs and police guard.

But his discharge by the court was short-lived, as police officers stationed at the court premises re-arrested and took him into custody.

What brought the drama?

The court adjourned sitting of the case to Monday, February 21, 2022 because the presiding magistrate, His Worship Korkor Achaw Owusu was on leave.

Counsel for the accused, Frederick Kankam, and the Attorney-General’s representative were in court during Monday’s hearing.

When the hearing resumed, a representative of the A-G's office told the court a new charge had been filed at the Kumasi High Court against the accused person.

Mubarak Kadida who held the brief for Charles Edward Addo Yirenkyi, prayed the court to discharge the accused person accordingly.

The court, based on the new information from the A-G’s office, discharged the accused accordingly.

Background

Rhodaline Amoah-Darko, until her disappearance, was a Senior Lands Administration Officer at the Kumasi office of the Lands Commission.

She got married to Dr. Wilberforce Aggrey of the Petroleum Department, KNUST, on September 21, 2013.

The couple has since been blessed with two kids, a six-year-old boy and a three-year-old girl.

But the former student of Krobo Girls Senior High School went missing on August 30, 2021, prompting a search for her.

Police say her husband, Dr. Wilberforce Aggrey, complained to the KNUST police on September 2, 2021, that his wife had been kidnapped from her home on Okodie Road, KNUST.

But further investigations into circumstances leading to the kidnapping revealed messages were sent from the wife’s phone on the same day of her alleged kidnapping.

Forensic examination conducted on a handwritten note found in the car of Rhodaline Amoah-Darko revealed that the note was authored by her husband, Dr. Wilberforce Nkrumah Aggrey.

Police prosecutors informed the Asokwa District Court that the note, which read, “Hello Sir, you know our number. Call and pay the ransom,” was written by Dr. Aggrey, a claim the defense counsel have objected to.

In October 2021, investigations by the Police revealed that the accused sent messages from Rhodaline’s phone to relatives and friends from a spot near the Okodie Road on the KNUST campus, on the day she was allegedly kidnapped.

Dr. Aggrey was denied bail by the Asokwa District Court on January 14, 2022.

It was the second time in three months he was refused bail, after a Kumasi High Court denied a similar bail application on November 16, 2021.

Where is Rhodaline Amoah-Darko?

A group calling itself Friends of Rhoda, made up of mostly co-workers at the Lands Commission, classmates and well-wishers, have been demanding justice for the missing woman.

The group, in their usual T-Shirts branded with pictures of Mrs. Rhodaline Amoah-Darko, has been storming the Kumasi High Court and Asokwa District Court in solidarity with their missing colleague.

With the inscribed hashtags “Bring Rhoda Back” and “Justice4Rhoda” at the front and back of their green and white T-shirts, they continue to ask for the whereabouts of Rhodaline who missed her 33^rd birthday celebrations on January 3, 2022.

According to court documents, the accused in his caution statement to police admitted he sent those messages from his wife’s phone after being forced by one Rukie, who has been allegedly contracted to harm his family.

Rukie, according to the accused, decided to spare the young children of the couple but decided to take the wife to a spot near the Volta Lake.

He is however unable to tell police the location of the victim’s phone, neither is he able to tell the location of the victim.

But the family of Rhodaline Amoah-Darko is optimistic of finding her alive.

For the family, it is hard to contend with the harsh reality of her disappearance.

“It has been extremely difficult for us,” her aunt, Charlotte Acquah, told Joynews.

“We all have the faith that she is alive and being kept somewhere by these wicked people. And we pray, and we are trusting the Lord that He will bring her alive to us,” she added.