Kasoa ritual murder trial: I’ll send you to prison to realise you were in heaven at the Police cells – Judge tells accused

The trial judge in the Kasoa murder case involving an 18 and 15-year-old has ordered for the second accused to be moved from Police custody to prison custody over allegations of misconduct.

The duo has been charged for the murder of 10-year-old Ishmael Mensah Abdella at Kasoa in the Central Region.

While the first accused, 15-year-old juvenile has pleaded guilty, his counterpart, the 18-year-old has pleaded not guilty.

When the case was called, prosecution led by Senior State Attorney, Nana Adoma Osei, informed the court that officers at the Osu Police Station requested that the second accused not be returned to their custody after the court proceedings on Monday.

The investigator who escorted the accused to the court indicated that the 18-year-old has been rotated among various police stations, including Ministry, Nima, Cantonment, and currently Osu Police Station due to fights with inmates.

“Apparently, he has been moved from Ministry Police station to Cantonment Police station: We took him to Nima and now Osu Police Station. As for Osu and Cantonment, the investigation officers told us that he has been fighting with the inmates.”

When asked for his side of the story, the 18-year-old denied the allegations.
“At the Nima Police Station the officers alleged that I had the information that some of the inmates had planned to escape jail.

“And due to this particular information, that is why I have been moved from Nima to striking Force.

“It is a certain police lady who lodged that complaint to the station officers and because of that they transferred all of us. We are about 10 inmates,” the second accused told the court.

His lawyers, led by Lawrence Boampong Wireko, pleaded with the court to keep him in Police custody after denying knowledge of the development.

After listening to the parties, Justice Lydia Osei Marfo ordered a trial warrant for the accused and ordered that he be kept in prison custody at Nsawam.

“I’m going to make an order for you to be sent to prison. So, you will realise that you were in heaven (at the police cells).

“In view of the intimation from counsel of the republic, an order is hereby made for a trial warrant to be issued against the second accused persons to be kept at the prison (Nsawam) and brought to court as and when he is needed,” Justice Osei Marfo noted.

Commenting on the absence of jurors, the judge indicated that due to the strike action by the jurors, the case would have to be adjourned again to July 8, by which time the court hoped they would return for verdict on the case to be given.