Kidnap and Robbery: three persons remanded for alleged involvement
Three men have been remanded into police custody by an Accra Circuit Court for allegedly robbing and kidnapping a man over a torn banner.
They were said to have robbed the man of his motorbike, two phones, tied him to an electric pole, beaten him and held him for a GH¢2000.00 ransom.
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In court last Monday, the accused persons, Kwabena Awere, 39, Emmanuel Nyarko Boadi, 37, and Nurudeen Adams, 33, pleaded not guilty to the offences. They have been ordered by the court, presided over by Samuel Bright Acquah to reappear on February, 13, 2023.
Facts of the case
In presenting the facts of the case, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Maxwell Oppong told the court that, the accused persons and the complainant, Roland Clottey, all live at Ablekuma-Joma in Accra. He added that there were four other suspects in the suit but were yet to be found.
The prosecutor said on July, 27, 2022, the complainant, Clottey, took his children to school in Joma CP on his motorbike and on his way back, stopped at a nearby fitting shop to service his exhaust pipe. “It was there that the accused persons and the four other missing suspects arrived in two vehicles and two motorbikes,” the prosecutor said.
The prosecutor detailed that, first accused person, Awere, got down from the car and started beating Clottey while pointing Clottey out as the one who tore a said banner. “Awere’s cronies joined in and beat Clottey then put Clottey and his motorbike in the car and drove to a ranch in Joma that is owned by the third accused person, Adams,” the prosecutor stated.
ASP Oppong said Adams, who is also the leader of the group, ordered Awere and the second accused person, Emmanuel, to take Clottey’s Itel and Techno phones and beat him some more. “The accused persons then videoed Clottey while he was made to carry a log behind his neck doing strenuous exercises”, the prosecutor said.
The prosecutor added that, the accused persons later tied Clottey to an electric pole and demanded GH¢2000.00 before he would be released. “Clottey’s brothers, Moses and Teiko who learned about the situation, attempted to rescue him but were attacked. The brothers then had to pay GH¢1000.00 of the said ransom before Clottey was released,” the prosecutor stated.
According to ASP Oppong, upon Clottey’s release, he reported the case at the police station. “Investigations immediately went underway leading to the arrest of the accused persons who have now been put before the court”, the prosecutor said.
The prosecutor added that the first and second accused persons Awere and Emmanuel have been charged with the robbery and kidnapping. “The third accused person, Adams has been charged with aiding in committing the alleged crime. Efforts are also underway to find the remaining four,” the prosecutor stated.
The lawyer for the accused person, Mr Akwasi Owusu, argued for bail for his clients on the basis that, “his clients were well-meaning citizens with families and so were not flight risks”. The prosecution, however, countered that the accused persons were still needed to assist in further investigations.