Two Kwabenya police station escapees convicted

Prince Osei and Atta Kwadwo have pleaded guilty to two counts of charges levelled against them

An Accra Circuit Court has convicted two of the three suspects who escaped lawful custody at the Kwabenya Police Station.

The two, Prince Osei and Atta Kwadwo, pleaded guilty to charges of abetment to escape lawful custody, and escaping lawful custody.

The third accused, Kofi Darko, pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The three were part of escapees who were freed by some robbers, after they attacked the Kwabenya Police station, killing the police officer in charge, and freeing inmates in the process.

The Judge, Aboagye Tandor, convicted the two on their plea, and deferred judgment to the 13th of February 2018.

Meanwhile, the nine suspects accused of attacking the Police Station, have been charged with abetment to escape from lawful custody.

The nine, which includes a woman, pleaded not guilty to the charge. They have been remanded in custody, and are expected to reappear on the 13th of February.

Background

A gang of suspected armed robbers attacked the Kwabenya District Police Headquarters, which accommodates the Kwabenya Police Station, killing the officer on duty, and freeing cell inmates.

A total of seven inmates were freed but three of them have since been rearrested.

‘Cop killer busted’

Last Sunday, the Accra Police Command indicated that it had picked up the man believed to have shot the police officer dead.

The suspect was identified as Kofi Seshie, aged 28.

Seshie was arrested along with four other suspects in the early hours of Saturday at Kasoa, according to a statement from the police.

The statement said these latest arrests bring the number of people detained following the incident to eleven, after six suspects were arrested during the week.

The police had announced a GHc15,000 bounty for any information leading to the arrest of the other four suspects who were freed from police custody by the robbers.

The now deceased Police officer sustained gunshot wounds and died whilst receiving treatment at the 37 Military Hospital.

He was the breadwinner for a family of seven with the youngest being three years.

‘No mercy’

Government has since condemned the attack on the Kwabenya District Police Headquarters.

Speaking at a press conference on Monday, Information Minister, Mustapha Hamid, assured that persons involved in the act will face the law.

“First of all government condemns the criminal conduct of these elements in the strongest possible terms. There is a manhunt for these criminal elements and we have no doubts in our minds that they will be brought to face justice.

“Government takes this opportunity to express its deepest sympathies to the family of the deceased policeman… While this is one of the isolated incidents that have unsettled the Ghanaian population, we wish to continue to assure the Ghanaian people that the security agencies are working to ensure the general safety of the population. The preventive mechanism of the Police Service remains intact which helps to nip such occurrences in the bud before they become full-blown criminal activities.”