The Accra Regional Police Command has reacted to the allegation on the whereabouts of Victor Stephen Nana Kankam, the landlord who shot and killed his tenant, Benjamin Okyere, at Ofankor in Accra a few months ago.
The Regional Police Public Relations Officer, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Efia Tenge, said the accused person was in the custody of the regional police command awaiting further interrogation.
She said the accused person was not missing as claimed and was awaiting a court date on September 9.
She told DAILY GUIDE that the accused on May 26, 2020 was remanded in prison custody by the Abeka Magistrate Court in Accra, presided over by Adwoa Achaamaa Ofosu, saying, “As part of Covid-19 protocols, the accused person was to undergo a mandatory Covid-19 test before he would be admitted into any of the prisons.”
DSP Tenge said the process took two weeks but within the second week, the police received advice they were waiting from the Attorney General’s (AG’s) Department, and it required further interrogation of the accused.
She revealed that since the accused was needed for further interrogation based on the AG’s advice, the police had to keep him in their custody.
“On September 1, 2020, we informed the court that the accused person was in our custody pending further interrogation based on the advice of the AG,” she added.
Recent Brouhaha
There was controversy about the whereabouts of Kankam when the case was called at the Abeka District Magistrate Court last Monday.
This was after the family of the deceased had alleged that the accused person was not taken into prison custody as ordered by the court on May 26.
When the case was called, Joseph Kwabena Manu Okyere, father of the deceased, told the court that they went to the Nsawam Medium Security Prison as well as the Ankaful Prison on two occasions to conduct their search and found that the accused was never sent to any of the detention facilities.
He then said they were beginning to believe a supposed comment allegedly made by mother of the suspect that her son would not spend any time in jail.
The presiding magistrate then urged Mr. Okyere not to be disappointed as she promised to ensure that an investigation is conducted into the allegation to ascertain whether the accused person is in one of the prisons.
Murder
Stephen Okyere, a budding musician, was shot four times, once in the rib, chest, shoulder and the thigh by Kankam in May.
According to reports, Kankam is said to have expressed interest in a woman the tenant was close to and asked him (tenant) for help to win the lady’s affection and succeeded in ‘helping’ the landlord start a romantic affair with the said lady.
However, the tenant allegedly liaised with the said lady to ‘milk’ the landlord dry, always requesting cash and gifts from the landlord.
Sensing he had been ‘deceived,’ the landlord ‘devised’ a scheme to take ‘revenge’ by ensuring that the tenant moved out when his rent was due.
The tenant, during an argument with the accused, had asked for more time to pack out of the room but in the heat of the argument, Kankam allegedly shot him four times.
The accused later claimed to the police that he acted in self-defence.
By Linda Tenyah-Ayettey
(lindatenyah@gmail.com)