Gregory Afoko granted bail after nearly a decade in remand

After nearly ten years in detention, Gregory Afoko, who is on trial for the 2015 murder of former New Patriotic Party (NPP) Upper East Regional Chairman Adams Mahama, has been granted bail by the Accra High Court.

Presiding Judge Justice Marie-Louise Simmons approved Afoko’s bail application, setting the amount at GH₵500,000 with two sureties backed by property. As part of the bail conditions, Afoko must report to the chief investigator or regional crime officer in Accra every two weeks until the trial is concluded.

This marks Afoko’s third bail application since his trial began in 2015. His legal team, led by Nana Yaw Osei, has long argued that political influence has unfairly impacted his case. Speaking on TV3’s News Central on February 21, Osei claimed that internal NPP conflicts—especially those linked to Afoko’s brother, former NPP National Chairman Paul Afoko—had played a role in obstructing due process.

“Personally, I have always thought that Afoko’s trial had more to do with politics than a simple criminal trial. There were people within his big brother’s party who wanted to do him ill,” Osei stated.

He further alleged that political interference had influenced repeated bail denials and police actions in the case.

“What interest do the police have? Somebody was clearly pushing the police, and I say this without any contradiction,” he added.