Maxine Freed!

An Accra Circuit Court has discharged Mary Maxine Selasie, the 54-year-old British school counselor at the Ghana International School (GIS) who was alleged by the police to have been involved in marijuana (wee) business. The court presided over by Eric Kyei Baffour struck out the narcotics charges leveled against Maxine following prosecution’s plea that the owner of the said cannabis had owned up. Maxine Selasie was discharged on January 10, 2011, after the prosecution told the court that “the owner of the substance has admitted and we are before you to pray for the discharge of A1 (first accused person).” Maxine was arrested on Saturday November 20, 2010 at her residence at Tema Gulf City, following the discovery of some parcels suspected to contain wee. Five others in her neighbourhood, Nukunu Kwame Gakpetor, 48, Rashid Raman Kofi, 32, Moses Kudjo Gakpetor, 50, Kobla Amedzor Gakpetor, 42 and Seth Kwaku Agama, 48, were also arrested. These persons are not her accomplices as alleged previously but were also picked up in their various homes. Maxine, who spoke to DAILY GUIDE after she was discharged by the court, said she was sad that in a democratic country like Ghana, people could be declared guilty before they were proven so or otherwise. She maintained that she was not in any way involved in the narcotics trade and had never smoked in her life. “I am a professional and have lived in Ghana for almost 10 years without any trouble,” she noted. Maxine, originally from Guyana, South America, has been in the employment of the British school for the past six years. She said she had so far executed her job dutifully without any complaint about her conduct whatsoever. Furthermore, she is mostly resident in Accra because of the location of her office while she travels to Tema only on weekends. Maxine used the opportunity to express her gratitude to the management and staff of GIS, as well as her parents for their understanding and unflinching support during her difficult moments. “I thank my family and friends also who have stood steadfastly by me during these trying moments.” Maxine, who has two children and is a grandmother to three, told DAILY GUIDE that the six weeks she spent in the cells at the CID Headquarters had been very distressful for her and her family since everything was topsy-turvy following newspaper publications that she was peddling drugs. She however hoped that with her discharge, things would get back on track as she tries to pick up the pieces and move on with her life.