The Wa High Court has handed down a life imprisonment sentence to Elisha Mahama, the former Human Resource Manager of Royal Cosy Hills Hotel, popularly known as Jirapa Dubai, for the murder of its CEO, Eric Johnson. The verdict, delivered on October 15, 2025, follows a unanimous 7-0 decision by the jury, affirming the prosecution’s case beyond reasonable doubt.
According to the prosecution, Mahama broke into Johnson’s private residence on February 10, 2024, using a ladder to scale the wall and a master card to unlock the door. He stabbed Johnson multiple times, leaving him in a pool of blood, and stole an unspecified amount of money and the key to Johnson’s private Nissan vehicle, which he later abandoned at Jirapa Zongo.
The investigation revealed that Mahama’s motive for the murder was linked to his dismissal from the company three days prior, reportedly due to allegations of having multiple sexual relationships with female employees, which disrupted hotel operations.
Reacting to the verdict, Principal State Attorney Saeed Abdul Shakur, who represented the Johnson family, expressed a sense of closure, saying, “I’m excited to an extent. The wheels of justice, they say, grind slowly. We may never get Eric Johnson back, but at least justice has been served”.
Mahama’s two co-accused, Belinda Miller and Kweku Kombata, were acquitted and discharged by the court. The sentencing brings an end to a nearly year-long trial that gripped residents of the Upper West Region and the wider business community.
The case has been widely followed, and the verdict has been welcomed by many as a measure of justice for the late entrepreneur, who had visionary plans to develop Jirapa into a tourism hubs.