Nima-Mamobi disturbances: Court remands 7
Seven out of the 11 suspects arrested in connection with the violent clashes between two youth groups at Nima and Mamobi were yesterday remanded in police custody by an Accra Circuit Court.
The seven are Abdul Gafaru Mahama, Atarouwa Bassam, Abdul Mumuni Gariba, Mohammed Saabi Barinu, Bashiru Ganiru, Illiasu Salim and Issah Seidu.
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Two others, Aziz Suleman and Ibrahim Moro are on admission in hospital, while the ringleaders, Ali Awudu, aka Bombo, and Ibrahim Husain, aka Kumodzi, are said to be on the run.
They were all charged for rioting with weapons and causing harm at the court, presided over by Ms Rosemary Baah Tosu.
Their remand, according to the court, was to allow the prosecution, led by Chief Inspector Dennis Terkpetey, to conduct thorough investigations.
Counsel for the accused persons had argued that some of his clients were not at the crime scene at the time of the disturbances.
They are to re-appear on Feb 1, this year.
According to the prosecutor, investigations had just commenced into the case, hence the need to remand the suspects to allow the police to conclude their investigations.
Chief/Insp. Terkpetey said there was still tension in those communities and that remanding them was in the interest of society and for their own safety.
However, counsel for Salim and Seidu, Mr Yaw Dankwa, in his oral application for bail, said his clients were not the perpetrators of the crime.
“The right people must be arrested and not innocent ones who had nothing to do with the crime,” he said.
Counsel for Ganiru, Mr Seth Oware, also associated himself with submissions made by Mr Dankwa and said at the time of the incident, his client was home and only helped a victim who sustained injury to the hospital.
The court, however, said it had to remand the suspects on grounds that the incident happened only few days ago and so the prosecution needed to conduct further investigations into the case.
Prosecution’s facts
The facts as presented by Chief Inspector Terkpetey were that at about 3 p.m. on January 18 this year, the police received information that there was a riot at Nima Gutter involving the use of firearms and other offensive weapons.
He said a team of armed police were quickly dispatched to the location where a crowd of people had gathered.
The names of Awudu and Husain came up as the leaders of the two groups respectively, and who were responsible for the riot.
The third suspect, Gafaru, was arrested after he was identified by the police as one of the perpetrators.
“A total of 12 spent shells were retrieved from the scene. A barbering shop located few metres away was also vandalised by the rioters,” the prosecutor added.
He said a search in the vandalised shop led to the discovery of three AAA live ammunition, one empty pistol magazine, one live pistol bullet, a knife and a machete.
Chief/Insp. Terkpetey said a victim, whose name was only given as Frimpong, 53, who was about to move his car from the scene, was hit by a bullet on his left shoulder and was currently responding to treatment at the Emergency Ward of the 37 Military Hospital.
