Hung jury results in dismissal of forgery charge against man
A forgery charge against an Oklahoma man accused of trying to pass a $95,000 bad check was dismissed Thursday because of a mistrial in Wichita County, court documents show.
The jury for Yaw Ferkah-Ahenkorah's trial deadlocked Jan. 26 in 89th District Court, according to court records. A judge dismissed the charge against him Thursday at the request of the Wichita County District Attorney's Office.
The 26-year-old was indicted in July 2022 on a charge of forgery of a financial instrument in connection with a check purportedly from Baker Hughes, an oilfield services company, according to allegations in court documents.
The felony is punishable by up to two years in a state jail facility.
Ferkah-Ahenkorah maintained his innocence of accusations that he attempted to deposit a forged check Feb. 9, 2017, at a Wells Fargo in Wichita Falls.
He told police that college friends from the University of Science and Arts in Chickasha, Oklahoma, gave him that check and others to deposit, according to a previous Times Record News report.
Jury selection for Ferkah-Ahenkorah's trial was set to begin Jan. 23 before 89th District Judge Charles Barnard. A list filed Jan. 24 shows that 12 jurors and two alternates were chosen.
After the jury retired to deliberate, the presiding juror sent notes to Barnard referencing being deadlocked, requesting a break, pens and coffee, and to make arrangements for child care.
Barnard sent jurors a letter telling them that in most cases, "absolute certainty cannot be expected."
The judge told them he would have to declare a mistrial if they could not agree on a verdict and to keep deliberating "in an effort to arrive at verdict that is acceptable to all members of the jury,if you can do so without doing violence to your conscience."
More:Sheriff Lyde tries to set the record straight
One note from the presiding juror told Barnard that after a lot of discussion and debate, jurors had progressed from seven to five to nine to three.
"At this point, each juror feels deeply convicted of their stance and will not change with additional debate," she said in the note. "We are deadlocked."
Trish Choate, enterprise watchdog reporter for the Times Record News, covers education, courts, breaking news and more. Contact her with news tips at tchoate@gannett.com. Her Twitter handle is @Trishapedia.
This article originally appeared on Wichita Falls Times Record News: Forgery charge dismissed in wake of hung jury in Wichita County
