Drama unfolded at the premises of the District Court at Achimota in the Greater Accra Region yesterday, when the two suspected killers of the slain soldier, Nana Kofi Amo and Benlord Ababio aka Nana Barima Ababio, a self-acclaimed traditional ruler, were hauled before court.
The armed police officers from the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service providing security for two suspected killers of a soldier at Millennium City in the Central Region threatened to shoot family members of the slain soldier.
The officers, eye witnesses say, pointed guns at the wailing family members of the murdered soldier when some members of the family attempted to attack suspects Nana Kofi Amo and Benlord Ababio aka Nana Barima Ababio in the police vehicle when they were hauled before the court.
Suddenly, one of the police officers, according to the eyewitness and journalist at the premises, were overheard shouting at the top of his voice at the family members that “We will shoot you down if you dare us,” causing fear and panic to the family members of the late soldier.
Nana Kofi Amo, has been charged with conspiracy to commit murder and was yesterday hauled before Achimota District court alongside Benlord Ababio aka Nana Barima Ababio, who allegedly shot and killed the soldier on April 30, 2024.
Ababio allegedly shot the late soldier who had gone to the Millennium City Police Station to report an incident of trespassing on a half plot of land which was a subject of litigation.
However, when the case was called, the lawyers of Benlord Ababio and Nana Kofi Amo were not in court. However, the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) has sent three of their lawyers to the court.
Following this development, the prosecution led by ASP Lawrence Anane told the court that the docket of the case has been sent to the Attorney General Department.
The plea of the two has been reserved by the court presided over by His Worship Prince Owusu, who remanded the two suspects for two weeks.
The court presided over by His Worship Prince Owusu, yesterday has still not granted bail for the accused persons and remanded the two into the police custody.
The case was adjourned to Thursday June 13, 2024 for the accused persons to reappear before court.
The brief fact of the prosecution led by ASP Lawrence Anane indicates that the deceased, Lance Corporal Michael Danso, was a military officer stationed at the Army Base Workshop at Burma Camp.
It states that on April 30, 2024, at about 4pm, the deceased Lance Corporal Michael Danso together with his two colleagues – Lance Corporal Abdul Omar Rahman and Lance Corporal Ametus Matthew went to Millennium City Police Station on board a Toyota RAV4 with registration number 3591-24, to report a case of trespass.
It said this was upon information that some encroachers were developing a parcel of land belonging to Lance Corporal Abdul Omar Rahman.
The fact said the accused appeared at the police station, attacked, and opened fire severally on Lance Corporal Michael Danso, who was in charge of the steering wheel of the Toyota RAV 4×4 vehicle, killing him instantly.
It added that the accused was immediately disarmed and arrested, and was subsequently arraigned for the court to remand him pending further investigations.
Speaking in an interview with journalists, the head of the family of slain soldier, Nana Yaw Boakye Ofori Atta expressed worry over the spate of intimidations being meted out to the family members in the premises of the court by the police guarding the two suspects.
“We the members of the family are very disappointed with the unprofessional conduct of the police officers in this matter. The pay master of the Nana Kofi Amo and Benlord Ababio using police to intimidate us in the court,” he stated.
Flanked by some family members, including the biological father of the deceased soldier, Mr Micheal Danso, Nana Ofori Atta lamented that ‘we are not happy in the delay of the trial of the case but we have to wait.
“But we the family want to the point out that the spate of intimidations being given out to us by the police officers in the Ghana Police Service in the court are very unbearable. We are completely tired of the police intimidations on us.
“We are sending this signal to the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Dr George Akuffo Dampare and President of Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo it is clearly shows that the police officers are protecting the murderers rather than we the family members of the slain solders who are grieving over the untimely death of Lance Corporal Micheal Danso,” Nana Ofori Atta bitterly complained.
“We are very surprised when one of the police officers who are guarding the suspected murderers pointed gun at me and threaten that l would shoot and kill me if l dare them. This police officer issued the threat on my life at the full glaring of the public at the premises of the Achimota District Court. The police officers repeated same threats on the lives other family members of the decreased solders.
But interestingly, he noted that the police officers have allowed the suspects to cover their faces with nose marks at the court.
“We telling the whole that police officers who ate threatening to shoot and kill us have allowed these murderers to cover their faces. These police officers are issuing threats to our lives that they are going to shoot and kill we the members of the family in the full glare of the public. So our lives are in the danger now.
We are telling the IGP and President Akufo-Addo that we need security protection for the members of the killed soldier, Nana Ofori-Atta revealed.
Mincing no words, the Spokesperson for the family of the killed soldier sent a strong signal that they are not going to sit down aloof for the police officers of the Ghana Police Service to continue to intimidate them.
“What we e are saying was that we are not going to sit down. We would not sit down at all. We want to put it to Inspector General of Police, Dr George Akuffo Dampare that he should immediately tell his police officers that we are ready to battle with them in the next two weeks of the court hearing of the case.”
Nana Ofori Atta angrily stated that they ever ready to come with their numbers to the court in the next coming date to defend themselves.
“We want to state that the police should come on that date to kill us there at the premises of Achimota District Court,” he stressed.
He expressed frustration that, despite many complaints, law enforcement agencies have failed to stop land guards from hurting people in land disputes.
He called on the Ghana Police Service, the Attorney General’s office, and other law enforcement agencies to ensure that persons responsible for the crime, including Benlord Ababio and Kwesi Alhaji and their associates, are dealt with drastically to atone for the blood of the deceased.
