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Murder of Sogakope assembly member: Mason jailed for life, 2 others get 94 years in jail
Five years after the assembly member for Sogakope, Mawuli Adzahli was robbed and shot dead at his residence in Sogakope by some gangsters, the ringleader, Richard Adikyere, a mason, has been sentenced to life imprisonment.
The court in Ho, presided over by Justice Daniel Ekow Mensah, also sentenced two accomplices to 47 years each in prison for robbery.
Adikyere had pleaded not guilty to robbery, possession of firearms without lawful authority and murder.
The two others, Emmanuel Hedzro, unemployed and Stephen Adzibolo, also pleaded not guilty to robbery.But they were all found guilty by the court.
Four other accomplices in the case, Obed Ayornu, Michael Sam, Samuel Kofi Zotorvi and his twin brother, Christain Zotorvi who entered plea deals with the court and pleaded guilty for their complicity in the case, were each sentenced to 15 years at an earlier hearing.
The court heard that Hedzro, the first accused in the case, sometime in 2020 informed his friend Adikyere that there was a wealthy merchant in Sogakope, and then instructed him to recruit a gang to join them to rob him.
The first accused then led Adikyere to show him the house of the assembly member and subsequently Adikyere recruited other gangsters for the operation.
Senior State Attorney, Andrews Dodzi Adugu said as part of the robbery operation, Adikyere, Adzibolo, Ayornu and Sam stormed the house of the Mawuli Adzahli on March 1, 2020, at about 1:30 am and broke into the room using cement blocks.
The court heard that a pump action gun and two pistols belonging to Adikyere were also used for the operation.
In the process, the prosecution said, Adikyere shot the merchant three times and killed him at the scene, before the gang took away a large sum of money from the house.
A post-mortem examination at the Sogakope District Hospital revealed the cause of death as head and chest injuries from gun shots at close range.
Days after the incident, the police arrested the accused persons, including Hedzro who had used his share of the booty to buy himself a motorbike valued at GH¢4,800.
The accused were arrested at different locations, including Ashaiman.
During interrogation, Adikyere admitted he shot and killed the assembly member with a pump action gun, the court heard.
It also emerged that Adikyere stole the gun from an earlier robbery incident, the court was further told.
Giving judgement, the court said it took into account the heinous and callous nature of the offences committed by the accused persons.
The court said it also considered the overwhelming evidence from the prosecution to prove its case.
As they were being led out of court, Adikyere who was handcuffed to Hedzro attempted to attack journalists who were trying to take photographs of them.
Source: Myjoyonline.com
The family of Ambassador James Victor Gbeho, a distinguished statesman and diplomat, has paid a courtesy call on President John Dramani Mahama. They officially informed him of his passing.
The delegation, representing the Gbeho family, noted that it was culturally and diplomatically important to formally notify the President of the loss before making a public announcement of his death.
Ambassador Gbeho was a towering figure in Ghanaian and international politics. He served in many diplomatic missions, including New York. He was Ghana’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, a Member of Parliament for the Anlo constituency, and President (formerly Executive Secretary) of the ECOWAS Commission.
He was widely respected for his role in regional integration and his contributions to global diplomacy at the United Nations.
President Mahama expressed his condolences and shared reflections on Ambassador Gbeho’s contributions to the country, West Africa and the world.
Funeral details will be announced later.
The Minister for the Interior, Muntaka Mohammed-Mubarak, has revoked all firearm permits in Ghana with immediate effect and announced a new registration process for all gun owners.
The minister made the announcement on Tuesday, June 23, at the information service department saying all individuals who currently hold licences to own firearms or sidearms must undergo a fresh registration process.
“From this afternoon, all permits that have been granted to any individual that you are holding a sidearm or firearm is hereby revoked,” Mr Muntaka said.
He explained that the government had identified gaps in the country’s firearm registration system and needed to introduce stricter measures to improve public safety.
“We are opening the window where everyone will have to come forward again to register or re-register the gun because we’ve changed the procedure,” he stated.
According to him, the government decided not to wait until the end of the year to make the changes because lives could still be saved within the next six months.
The Interior Minister said one of the new requirements would be mandatory mental health screening for applicants seeking firearm licences.
“We’ve seen that people with mental health have already gone through and have the sidearm. Now we are introducing mental health. Before we give you the sidearm, we have to be sure that you have the mental stability to hold the firearms,” he said.
Mr Muntaka also announced that applicants would be required to undergo drug tests before being granted licences.
“We’ve also realised that people who are on drugs are also holding their arms and they are legitimate because it’s been registered. Now you have to go through drug tests to be sure that you are not on drugs before you can hold sidearms,” he added.
The minister said the new measures form part of efforts by the government to tighten firearm control and prevent legally registered weapons from falling into the wrong hands.
He urged all firearm owners to cooperate with the new registration process once details of the exercise are announced.
By: Jacob Aggrey
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