Gregory Afoko and Adams Mahama
A prosecution witness in the trial of Gregory Afoko, who has been accused of murdering the Eastern Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Adams Mahama, has told the court that the accused person, upon his arrest, threatened to “show” the deceased if he attempted to interfere in the activities of his group.
DSP Thomas Yaw Agbanyo, who was the Regional Public Affairs Officer (PRO) at the Bolgatanga Police Headquarters at the time of the incident, indicated that Afoko said his group ‘Friends of Afoko’ would resist all attempts by the deceased to obstruct their work.
The police officer, who is now the District Commander of Kpeve District in the Volta Region, said Afoko had been his acquaintance for about 10 years, adding that “I call him Rasta and he calls me Chief, Chief.”
Led in his evidence-in-chief by Mathew Amponsah, a Chief State Attorney, DSP Agbanyo told the court that Afoko, upon his arrest, wondered why the police were “following this foolish man,” referring to the deceased.
He said the accused while in the police vehicle told them that one Asabke Alangdi, who is now on the run, was the leader of the 50-member group.
DSP Agbanyo told the court that on May 21, 2018 he was on patrol at the Yinike Link, a suburb of Bolgatanga, together with four other police officers.
He stated that at about 1:30 am, the driver of a vehicle from the Navrongo direction pulled over introduced himself as an executive of the NPP in the region.
“He told us that some people had poured some substance suspected to be acid on the deceased and that he had been rushed to the Bolgatanga Government Hospital and that he was going there. So the patrol team followed up to the hospital.
“When we got there we saw the deceased Adams Mahama at the emergency ward lying on the hospital bed almost naked with a piece of cloth around his waist.”
“The medical team was attending to him and there were burns on the upper part of his body, and the flesh was pilling off.
“We saw many people at the hospital, including family members, as well as Tofic and the widow,” DSP Agbanyo told the court.
He narrated that he later informed his regional commander as well as the regional crime officer about the incident.
DSP Agbanyo, who is the seventh prosecution witness, told the court that “when we got to the crime scene, which was the house of the deceased, we saw a white pick-up and the engine was still running while the head lights were on with the front door opened.
“The wife of the deceased gave us a polythene bag containing the dress the deceased was wearing when the substance was poured on him. She also gave us a gallon containing some black liquid and we handed them over to the regional crime officer, who was also at the crime scene with his team,” the witness recounted.
DSP Agbanyo stated that they later moved to Gregory Afoko’s house.
“When we got there we called him and he came out in his boxer shots and dread locks. The crime officer asked him to go back and dress well and after he did, he was cautioned and arrested.”
“We kept him in the patrol car and asked him to take us to Asabke’s house. In the vehicle Afoko asked why we were following the foolish man, referring to the deceased person. He said that the deceased had a pistol which he had not registered?
He added that when they got to Asabke’s house, he was not home.
Defence lawyer, Francis Gariba Apam, who held brief for Osafo Buaben, in his cross examination, enquired about the number of police personnel that travelled to the hospital and he said five.
Hearing continues today.
By Gibril Abdul Razak