The High Court has ordered the founder and leader of Heaven Way Champions International Ministry, Patricia Asiedua Asiamah, popularly known as Nana Agradaa, to open her defense in a case involving the alleged sharing of nude images of a prophet. In court on Monday, July 7, presiding judge Mary Ekue Yanzuh dismissed Agradaa’s submission of no case and ordered her to open her defense.
Her lawyers, led by Richard Baffour, informed the court that she had been incarcerated and requested an order for her to be brought to court from jail for the ruling. However, Justice Yanzuh declined and delivered the ruling in her absence. “My prayer is that your ruling can be delivered in her presence. We pray for an adjournment and an order for her to be brought to court,” Baffour pleaded.
The judge further ordered the defense lawyers to file their witness statements and directed prison officers to ensure that Agradaa is brought to court on the next adjourned date. The case has been adjourned to July 30 for a case management conference. The former fetish priestess-turned-evangelist has been charged with one count of possession of obscene material and three counts of non-consensual sharing of intimate images.
Three others—Enoch Owusu Kissi, Charles Omane, and Emmanuel Kofi Gyasi—also charged with abetment of crime (non-consensual sharing of intimate images), are expected to open their defense as well. According to the prosecution’s facts, sometime in 2021, Nana Agradaa, who owns Thunder TV (now Today’s TV), allegedly displayed the nude photos of Prophet Emmanuel Appiah Fomum to the public.
“The first accused (Nana Agradaa) also published the nude pictures of the complainant, which she designed in the form of a product label for a drink (bitters) for sale on Thunder TV. On that particular program, she shared and published the nude pictures of the said prophet. The second to fourth accused persons were passing disparaging remarks about the complainant’s nudity.
The first accused person also caused an employee of her TV station to publish nude pictures of the complainant,” the prosecution stated. Meanwhile, the Heaven Way Champions International Ministry leader was on Thursday, July 3 sentenced to 15 years in hard labour by an Accra Circuit Court after finding her guilty of charlatanic advertisement and defrauding by false pretences.
Agradaa was fined 25 penalty units, equivalent to 300 Ghana cedis for the charge of charlatanic advertisement. and 15 years each for two counts of defrauding by false pretences.
She’s to serve the jail term concurrently.
By: Laud Adu-Asare
