Further details have emerged about the real reasons why Managing Editor of The Herald newspaper, Larry Dogbe, has been sentenced to seven days’ imprisonment.
An Accra High Court found Mr Dogbe guilty of contempt of court for violating an injunction that barred further publications concerning businessman Kevin Okyere.
Justice Isaac Addo handed down the sentence on Thursday, June 25, after ruling that Mr. Dogbe had breached a subsisting court order issued in a civil case involving Mr. Okyere, the Chief Executive Officer of Springfield Exploration and Production.
The contempt application, filed by Mr. Okyere, argued that despite the court’s injunction, The Herald went ahead to publish a series of articles that the court had expressly restrained pending the determination of the substantive case.
According to court documents, the injunction prohibited Mr. Dogbe and the newspaper from publishing statements deemed capable of undermining or tarnishing Mr. Okyere’s reputation while the case remained before the court.
Mr. Okyere’s legal team told the court that subsequent publications by The Herald, including reports linking him to fraud and bad-faith commercial dealings, amounted to a deliberate disregard of the court’s order and damaged his reputation within the petroleum industry and among the public.
The High Court agreed with the applicant’s arguments and found Mr. Dogbe in contempt, sentencing him to seven days in prison.
Mr. Dogbe, however, opposed the application, maintaining that he was unaware of the injunction when the publications were made. He also challenged the authenticity and admissibility of some of the documents relied upon by the applicant during the contempt proceedings.
The ruling underscores that the custodial sentence was imposed for the court’s finding that Mr. Dogbe disobeyed an existing injunction—not merely because The Herald published stories about Mr. Okyere.
