Businessman in court for threatening estranged wife with death

A 44-year-old businessman, who allegedly threatened to kill his estranged wife, has been granted GH¢100,000 bail with two sureties to be justified by the Accra Circuit Court.

Mohammed Abubakar Imam Lanson, also known as Andre, who has been charged with threat of death, pleaded not guilty.

The court, presided over by Mr. Isaac Addo, ordered Lan­son to deposit his passport at the court’s registry until further notice.

The counsel for Lanson, Theophilus Donkor, moving for bail, said his client had a fixed place of residence, was gainfully employed, and had children who depended on him, and, therefore, not a flight risk.

Prosecuting Chief Inspector Lawer said that the complainant, Maimuna Sarki Abubakar, is a so­cial worker and a Nigerian living in the United Kingdom (UK).

The prosecution said Lan­son lives in Kumasi, in the Ashanti Region, and Abubakar is Lanson’s estranged wife.

Chief Insp. Lawer said that in January 2020, Lanson contacted Abubakar on social media. He (Lanson) portrayed himself to Abubakar as an Imam, and they later married.

The court heard that they later separated; however, before that, Abubakar purchased land at East Trassaco through Lanson and built a one-story building on it.

According to Chief Insp. Lawer, Abubakar furnished the house and returned to the UK, and whenever Abubakar came to Ghana, she stayed in the house with him.

The court heard that in 2020, Lanson persuaded Abubakar to buy and ship a 2020 Chevrolet Silverado and 2019 Infinity CPX vehicles to him in Ghana to sell and use the proceeds to purchase another land at Adjiriganor for her.

Chief Insp. Lawer said Lanson sold the vehicles and used the pro­ceeds to buy four plots of land at Adjiriganor, Lanson had the lease documents registered in his name rather than Abubakar’s.

The prosecution said Lanson physically assaulted and injured Abubakar in October 2022 and threatened to kill her without provocation.

Chief Insp. Lawer said Abubakar was forced to relocate to the UK and asked a caretaker, Kofi Men­sah Omani, a witness in the case, to live in the house, but Lanson forced Omani out.

The prose­cution said that on September 15, 2023, Abubakar authorised her cousin, Abubakar Sambo, to report the incident to the police, and Lanson was arrested on November 1, 2023.