US Court Reduces Anas' $18M Defamation Charges Against Ken Agyapong to $500

• A US court has reduced Anas Aremeyaw Anas' $18 million defamation award against Kennedy Agyapong to $500
• The reduction followed a motion for remittitur filed by Agyapong after a jury found him guilty of defaming Anas
• Anas said the case was about justice, not the money, and noted no allegations against him were proven in court

A US court has significantly reduced the $18 million in damages awarded to Ghanaian investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas in his case against Kennedy Agyapong, lowering the figure to $500.

This follows a motion for remittitur filed by Agyapong, the former Member of Parliament for Assin Central.

In the motion, he asked the trial judge to reduce the jury’s initial award, thereby indirectly admitting to having maliciously defamed Anas.

American jury finds Kennedy Agyapong guilty

A few weeks ago, an American jury found Kennedy Agyapong guilty of maliciously defaming the reputation of Anas.

Consequently, the jury initially awarded $18 million in damages in favour of the ace investigative journalist.

Following this, Kennedy Agyapong filed a motion for remittitur, asking the judge to reduce the amount awarded against him.

At the hearing of the motion, the trial judge granted the former MP's appeal to reduce the damages awarded against him.

Anas shares on defamation suit

This latest development in the long-standing legal dispute was disclosed by Anas in a statement posted on Facebook on Monday, May 12, 2025.

According to the renowned journalist, Agyapong had technically admitted to defaming him in his motion for remittitur.

However, the trial judge, in considering the ex-politician's motion, ruled that the damages awarded by the jury were excessive.

Anas, in the press statement, reiterated that his pursuit of the case was never about the money, but a fight for truth and justice.

"Today, the trial judge granted Kennedy Agyapong's motion for remittitur and reduced the initial award to $500. This means that, while the judge held that Kennedy Agyapong had defamed me, he reasoned that the award against Kennedy Agyapong by the jury was excessive," Anas wrote.

"Many avenues for redress accrue to me. But it is important to state, as I previously did, that this fight has not been about the money, but rather, a fight for truth and justice. I am happy that not a single allegation was proven against me in court when Kennedy Agyapong was given a full opportunity to substantiate his claims. I will continue in my relentless fight against corruption — and in doing that, continue to name, shame, and jail," he further wrote.

Kennedy Agyapong celebrates over the new ruling

Kennedy Agyapong could not contain his excitement after judgment was pronounced in the defamation case against him by Anas Aremeyaw Anas.

A video, which has since gone viral, showed the moment the former MP, clad in white, was seen singing and rejoicing with his family and team members.

Kennedy Agyapong, amid smiles, said his wife would be visiting the US and would therefore hand over the money to be paid to Anas.

He jokingly said he would not mind increasing the amount for Anas.

"Maybe we have to give Anas five thousand,” Mr. Agyapong told relatives amidst laughter and clapping from the people in the room.

The Facebook post by Anas is below.

Reaction to judgment on Anas Agyapong's case

Following the Facebook post by Anas, some Ghanaians thronged the comment section to share their views on the latest judgment by the US court.

Below are a few of the comments:

@Moustapha Yambone said:

"That's great. More victories ahead of you because you struggle a lot for this country."

@Addai Elijah also said:

"Herr if this had happened in Ghana I tell you people would have accused the judge of taking bribe."

@Isaac Osei Mensah commented:

"So are you saying if they had rewarded you the 18M you wouldn’t have taken the money anaa."

Anas wears prosthetics in the US court

YEN.com.gh also reported that Anas wore prosthetics to court for the hearing of his defamation case against Agyapong.

This was part of the measures the investigative journalist put in place to hide his identity during the legal proceedings.

Pictures and videos from a US court showing the purported identity of Anas took over social media, sparking many reactions.

Source: YEN.com.gh