Asamoah Gyan, a former Ghanaian football star, has vowed to appeal a GH¢1 million judgment in court after losing his defamation case to journalist Anthony Sarfo.
Gyan, who played for several clubs in Europe and Asia, as well as the Ghana national team, described the ruling as “awful” and claimed there was a conspiracy against him.
According to a report by Ghana Web, He said he would let his lawyers file an appeal and follow up on the case, which he said was based on false accusations of extortion and unlawful arrest.
A long-running legal battle
The legal battle between Gyan and Sarfo dates back to 2015, when Sarfo published a story on his website alleging that Gyan had raped and sodomized a young woman named Sarah Kwablah.
Gyan denied the allegations and sued Sarfo and four others for extortion, claiming they had demanded money from him to drop the story.
Sarfo and the others were arrested and charged, but they were later found not guilty and acquitted by a court in 2016.
Following his release, Sarfo sued Gyan and his manager, Samuel Anim Addo, for malicious prosecution and demanded GH¢1 million as compensation.
A controversial court ruling
On Friday, December 8, 2023, the Accra High Court presided by Justice Ernest Owusu Dapaa, announced the ruling in favor of Sarfo.
The court found Gyan and Anim Addo guilty of falsely accusing Sarfo of extortion and unlawful arrest.
The court also indicated that the arrest, which was pursued by Anim Addo, was to protect Gyan’s image to complete a move to China at that time.
Hence, the arrest was for Gyan’s protection and not the publication.
The court awarded Sarfo GH¢900,000 in damages, GH¢111,000 for the 111 months he was out of work, which paid him GH¢1,000 at the time.
Anim Addo and Asamoah Gyan were both charged GH¢60,000, bringing the total to GH¢1,071,000.
A defiant response
In an interview with GHOne TV, Gyan expressed his dissatisfaction with the court ruling and said he would not give up on the case.
“I will appeal because it doesn’t make sense. There is no way I should lose that case. I now heard the judge didn’t collect our evidence and everything,” he said.
“There is a conspiracy somewhere. I will follow up this time. That judgment was very awful,” he added.
Gyan also said he had evidence to prove that Sarfo and his accomplices had tried to extort money from him and that he would present it in the appeal.
He said he was not afraid of Sarfo and that he was ready to face him in court again.
A hopeful outlook
Despite the setback, Gyan said he was optimistic about his future and his career. He said he was still passionate about football and that he had offers from some clubs to continue playing. He also said he was working on some projects to give back to society and to support young talents in Ghana. He was grateful for the love and support he had received from his fans and his family throughout the ordeal.
