In a defamation lawsuit against former Assin Central Member of Parliament Kennedy Agyapong, an Essex County jury granted $18 million to popular investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas. Professor Kwaku Azar, a legal researcher, posted this information on Facebook, stating that Agyapong has asked for a remittitur, or a decrease in the damages granted.
The case stems from statements made by Agyapong following the release of Anas’s investigative report on corruption in 2018. Agyapong publicly attempted to discredit Anas, prompting the journalist to sue for defamation.
On May 29, 2018, during a live program on Adom TV, Agyapong stated that Anas was a blackmailer, corrupt, an extortionist, and evil.
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Interestingly, in January 2023, an Accra High Court dismissed Anas’s defamation suit against Agyapong in Ghana, ruling that while the words spoken were factual and capable of being defamatory, Anas could not prove his case. In the Ghanaian case, Anas had sought GH¢25 million in damages.
During the US trial, Anas was seen in court wearing sunglasses and a nose mask, but not his customary full-face covering. Kennedy Agyapong and his brother, Ralph Agyapong, were also present.
A Resounding Victory For Anas
In a statement released on March 18, 2025, Anas called the US verdict “a resounding affirmation that falsehood and character assassination have no place in society.”
He wrote, “Yesterday, in the Essex County Superior Court in New Jersey, an eight-member jury delivered a unanimous verdict finding Kennedy Agyapong, a former member of the Ghanaian Parliament, liable for defamation and awarding damages of 18 million U.S. dollars. These damages arise from statements he made following the airing of the BBC documentary on corruption, ‘Betraying the Game,’ on October 28, 2018…This decision is not merely a legal triumph; it is a resounding affirmation that falsehood and character assassination have no place in our society. It reinforces our commitment to building a robust democracy that serves all ordinary Ghanaians.”
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