The Editor of The Herald newspaper, Larry Dogbey, has been sentenced to seven days’ imprisonment by the Accra High Court after being found guilty of contempt of court.
Mr. Dogbey confirmed the ruling in a Facebook post on Thursday, June 25, indicating that the judgment was delivered by Justice Isaac Addo.
According to him, the case relates to reporting by The Herald on a petition allegedly filed by a multinational company involving Kevin Okyere and Petraco SA. The petition was said to have been submitted to several state institutions, including the Criminal Investigations Department (CID), the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO), the Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC), and the Office of the Attorney-General.
“Justice Isaac Addo of the Accra High Court has just convicted me and sentenced me to seven days’ imprisonment in the case involving Kevin Okyere and Petraco SA. The Herald newspaper reported only on a petition filed by the multinational company with CID, EOCO, GIPC, and the Attorney-General, among others,” he wrote.
He described the ruling as a setback for press freedom, stating: “Ghana deserves better. Journalism is not a crime.”
Details of the specific legal grounds for the contempt conviction have not yet been made public.
Further details are expected once the full judgment of the court is released.
