Chinese woman in Rosewood saga deported

Huang Yanfeng, aka Helena Huang, the Chinese woman who is standing trial for allegedly transporting a large quantity of Rosewood to Tema for export to China illegally has been deported.

Officials of the Ghana Immigration Service (GIS), who made this known in Accra yesterday, said Huang was deported for engaging in illicit business while in the country and subsequently revoked her resident permit.

A notice signed by the Comptroller-General of Immigration, Mr Kwame Esuah Takyi, informing Huang of the decision read: “You are hereby informed that your permit to remain in Ghana has been revoked. Therefore, your continuous presence in Ghana is unlawful.”

The letter, a copy of which the Daily Graphic has sighted, stated: “The Comptroller-General of Immigration, acting in accordance with Section 21 of the Immigration Act, 2000 (Act 573), has ordered that you be repatriated from Ghana to your home country, China.”

A statement confirming the deportation, which was released in Accra yesterday, and signed by the Head of Public Affairs at the GIS, Mr Michael  Amoako-Atta, said the GIS had also informed the relevant institutions, including the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration as well as missions  abroad to refuse her visa  to facilitate her entry into the country in future.

Flight details

The Daily Graphic gathered that the 43-year-old woman left the country on Wednesday, June 26, 2019 aboard Egypt Air Flight MS882, operated by Boeing 737-866, to Cairo, en route to Beijing, China.

The flight departed the Kotoka International Airport at 1.53 p.m., 13 minutes later than its scheduled departure at 1.40 p.m., and landed in Cairo at 9:51 p.m., nine minutes ahead of schedule.

Case

Huang jumped bail about eight weeks ago after she had been granted a police enquiry bail.

The Tamale Circuit Court, presided over by Mr Justice Twumasi Appiah, on May 13 granted a journalist, Mohammed Bondirigbun, who had stood surety for her, bail in the sum of GH¢3,000, with two sureties of public officers who earn a minimum of GH¢3,000 or property worth GH¢150,000.
He was also given two weeks to produce the suspect.

When Huang appeared in court on Tuesday, June 25, 2019, the court referred her to the GIS to look into her documents for further investigations and acquitted Bondirigbun.

The Northern Regional Commander of Immigration, Chief Supt William Appiah Andoh, said then that Huang would be transferred to Accra for further investigations.

“Listening to her, and listening to all that she has told me, I think the best option left for me is to send her to Accra for further investigations,” he told reporters after the court had referred the matter to the GIS.

This is the second time a Chinese has been deported after being discharged by a court. En Huangaka Aisha, the suspected illegal mining kingpin, and four others were deported in similar fashion on December 19, 2018.

State prosecutors had earlier that morning filed a nolle prosequi to discontinue the trial of En Huang and four other Chinese alleged to be involved in illegal mining.

A Senior State Attorney, Ms Mercy Arthur, presented the application for nolle prosequi to the Accra High Court, presided over by Mr Justice Charles Ekow Baiden.
Based on the application, the court discharged the five accused persons.

Background

Huang was arrested at the Vittin Police Checkpoint on the Tamale-Yendi highway on May 5, 2019 escorting two truckloads of Rosewood, with registration numbers BA 2225 C and GR9720-12, from the direction of Yendi through Tamale en route to Tema.

Having jumped a police enquiry bail during the week of her arrest, she was rearrested when she reported herself to the police six weeks after.

Facts

The Northern Regional Crime Officer of the Ghana Police Service, who is also in charge of the North East and the Savannah regions, Supt Otuo Acheampong, told journalists after her arrest on May 6, 2019 that the police had received intelligence on the incident and immediately alerted the various checkpoints.

According to him, preliminary investigations revealed that the suspect did not have any lumbering certificate, a passport and other valuable documents that permitted her to engage in Rosewood business in the country.

He added that investigations also revealed that Ms Huang had gained notoriety in the illegal Rosewood business in the Northern, Upper East and Upper West regions.

Ban on Rosewood logging

In March this year, the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources placed a ban on the harvesting and export of Rosewood in the country.

The ministry also directed the Forestry Commission to suspend the processing of permits for the exportation of Rosewood.

However, currently, some companies are said to be exporting Rosewood using expired licences, while others have no form of permit.

Following the ban on the harvesting and export of rosewood, the Northern Regional Police Command increased its surveillance at various checkpoints to help fight the menace.