Ghanaian politician and businessman Kennedy Agyapong has seen his defamation penalty drastically reduced from $18 million to $500.
This decision follows a legal battle initiated by investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas, who sued Agyapong for defamation over comments made during an interview in 2021.
It began when Agyapong, known for his outspoken nature and media presence, made several serious allegations against Anas during a September 2021 appearance on The Daddy Fred Show.
In the interview, Agyapong accused Anas of being involved in criminal activities, including being a thief and having a hand in the murder of journalist Ahmed Suale, who was killed in 2019.
Anas viewed these remarks as damaging to his reputation and consequently filed a defamation suit against Agyapong in a US court.
In March 2025, a jury in Essex County, New Jersey, found Agyapong guilty of defamation.
They awarded Anas $18 million in damages, a sum that caught attention locally and internationally due to the scale of the penalty. However, Agyapong’s legal team was quick to challenge the ruling.
Following the decision, Agyapong’s legal team filed a motion for remittitur, requesting a reduction in the awarded damages. In May 2025, the court granted this motion, significantly reducing the award to $500.
Kennedy Agyapong’s media team stated the court’s decision, declaring that “there was never an $18 million judgment against Hon. Ken Ohene Agyapong to begin with!”
According to them, the $500 award resulted from a strategic motion filed by Agyapong’s legal team to preserve the initial jury decision.
They insisted that the $500 figure was not a reduction from a supposed $18 million, but rather the final, sole award granted by the court.
The statement also included pointed criticism of Anas and his camp. “Anas and his camp are desperately trying to twist the narrative to save face,” the statement read. “If it was never about the money, why did Anas originally ask for a whopping $30 million and attempt to portray Hon. Ken as a wealthy target who could easily foot the bill?”
Agyapong’s team said, “The fight was never about money or silencing journalism but rather about standing firm against character assassination and defending one’s integrity.”
On the other hand, Anas welcomed the court’s decision, although he expressed disappointment over the reduced financial award. Anas issued a statement acknowledging that while the monetary penalty had been reduced, the judgment still affirmed the defamation claims against Agyapong.
“The core issue was always about the court’s affirmation of the defamation judgment,” Anas said. “Despite the reduced financial figure, the judgment proves that I was right in defending my integrity.”
