REPUBLIC V. DIRECTOR OF PRISONS; EX PARTE ALLOTEY AND ANOTHER

ABOAGYE J.

On 29 August 1973, his honour Judge Andoh (as he then was), sitting as a district magistrate, committed the applicants to the James Fort Prison to await the warrant of the appropriate commissioner for their surrender to the Government of the United States to stand trial for the offence of fraud by false pretences.

After the committal, the applicants were told of their right under section 11 (1) of the Extradition Act, 1960 (Act 22), to apply for an order of habeas corpus. An application for an order of habeas corpus was accordingly made to the High Court on behalf of the applicants but the order was refused on 20 September 1973 in a ruling reported in [1973] 2 G.L.R. 480. The applicants appealed to the Court of Appeal against the order of the High Court and the appeal was dismissed on 19 June 1974. The applicants did not appeal against the decision of the district magistrate. They have nearly ten months after the magistrate had given his decision applied to this court for an…