The Clare Champion Clare news, sport, entertainment and local notes
GHANAIAN kidnap victim James Lafferty believes his kidnappers’ trial is now unlikely to go ahead in Accra. The former Clare Ladies Football County Board chairman was held captive for five days in October 2007 in the west African capital.
The ringleader behind the kidnap was arrested but later released on bail. Mr Lafferty says that following a general election last year, the newly appointed Ghanaian Attorney General decided to press ahead with the trial. However, the bailed kidnapper and his colleagues have disappeared.
In recent months, Mr Lafferty has been in regular telephone contact with Detective Martin Bawuah, who is leading the investigation.
“I’m annoyed because I want to get it over and done with. Why should you go into any country and get kidnapped? You should be able to go through all these countries of your own free will,” he told The Clare Champion this week.
“They reckon he’s gone to America. I don’t expect that they’ll catch him,” he added.
Mr Lafferty has been in regular contact with the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs who refused to fund his trial expenses. However, he says he has secured the money to fund the trial, which now may not go ahead.
“I have the money in place but now there’s no kidnapper,” he explained.
If the trial goes ahead, Mr Lafferty has been told that he must liase with the Ghanaian police, Ennis gardaí and the Department of Foreign Affairs in Dublin to let them know of his travel arrangements and whereabouts.
In one of his most recent email exchanges with Detective Bawuah, he expressed his frustration at the delay in the trial.
“I have gone to a lot of trouble trying to sort out funds for my trip to Ghana for the trial and as of now, everything is in place for my return visit. It has come as a great shock that the kidnapper and his associates have jumped bail. I need this trial to go ahead so it will bring closure to me and my wife. I have done everything at my end and I now have to wait until he is re-arrested and put back in jail,” Mr Lafferty said in his email.
