The Accra High Court has once again adjourned the commencement of trial in the case involving Hanan Abdul-Wahab Aludiba and another, popularly known as the Buffer Stock case.
The presiding judge, Justice Francis Achibonga, JA, has adjourned the case to Tuesday, October 20, 2026, at 10:00 a.m., despite the prosecution indicating that the outstanding issue which had previously stalled the trial had been resolved.
At Wednesday’s proceedings, the prosecution, led by the Deputy Attorney General, informed the Court that the items belonging to the accused persons, which had been the subject of a pending application before the Court, had been released to them on Monday.
The Deputy Attorney General therefore urged the Court to permit the State to call its first witness, arguing that the release of the items was the only outstanding issue for which the case had previously been adjourned.
The defence, led by former Attorney General Godfred Dame, Esq., consequently withdrew its pending application seeking the release of the items.
However, counsel for the second accused, Augustine Obour, Esq., informed the Court that the defence had not yet been able to access the contents of the phones because they had only received them on Monday and had not had sufficient time to charge and examine them.
Although the prosecution sought to persuade the Court that the evidence-in-chief of its first witness could nevertheless be taken, Justice Achibonga adjourned the case.
The Court explained that the adjournment was necessary to afford the defence ample time to access and examine the contents of the phones before the trial begins.
This development means that the commencement of the substantive trial has been pushed back once again, despite the prosecution having filed all its evidence before the Court, while case management was completed several months ago.
The State’s first prosecution witness is also reportedly ready to testify.
It therefore remains to be seen whether October 20, 2026 will finally mark the commencement of the substantive trial in the Buffer Stock case.
