A scene from the incident
THE SUSPECTED female thief who was assaulted and abused by an angry mob in Kumasi cannot be located.
The victim was said to have reported her ordeal to the police and she was issued with a medical form for treatment.
The light-skinned suspect has since that time not been located, a reliable police source told DAILY GUIDE.
The absence of the lady, accused of stealing GH¢1,100 by her captors, was said to have delayed police investigations.
Video
A video of a light-skinned lady, who was stripped naked and abused in public, was all over social media, recently.
The hapless lady, had been accused of stealing GH¢1,100 from a certain shop around the PZ area in Adum.
In the video, a group of angry-looking young men were seen beating the naked lady from all angles.
The mob even did the unthinkable by inserting their toes into her private part amid wailing from the lady victim.
Some of the young men also opened the lady’s private part wide and spanked her with belts.
Arrests
About 24 of persons in connection with the incident, according to the Police, have been arrested.
A statement issued by the Director of Police Affairs of the Ghana Police Service, Superintendent of Police, Cephas Arthur said “the suspects were arrested on 21st February, 2017 in a police operation at the scene of the incident.”
The statement indicated that “one suspect identified only as Kusi, however, managed to escape arrest.”
“The Police is conducting further investigation into the incident for the necessary action,” according to the statement.
It urged that members of the public who have information on the perpetrators of what the Police described as a heinous crime, to contact the Ashanti Regional Police Command or call Police emergency numbers: MTN and Vodafone short code 18555 or 191 on all networks.
A police capo, who demanded anonymity, said the police need to locate the lady first before they could carry out the identification exercise.
Reports of molestation of suspected female thieves continue to make headlines in the media.
It would be recalled that in 2014, three girls believed to be students of the University of Ghana were molested at Mr. Price, a clothing line, inside the Accra Mall
The three alleged shoplifters, were seen in videos that went viral on social media at the time, crawling amidst humiliating cat-calls from shoppers and other passers-by.
Justice Call
Meanwhile, pressure group, OccupyGhana, is demanding justice for the lady stripped naked in public.
According to OccupyGhana, “The practice of mob justice is unfortunately a rather dark side of our country’s history and does not seem to want to go away. It is unconstitutional, barbaric, unjust, unfair and criminal, and often has fatal consequences.”
On February 14, 2017, a lady was stripped naked, beaten, and paraded barefooted on the streets of Kejetia in Kumasi.
The men mercilessly stripped the suspect naked, forced her legs open and abused her while parading her in shame on the streets as onlookers huddle around to hurl insults at her and even film the act.
Despite her pleas for mercy, her accusers continued to unleash their anger on her.
She was later taken to the hospital to seek medical attention after which she was discharged following an intervention by the police.
OccpyGhana in a statement said “Article 15 of the Constitution demands respect for the dignity of all persons, and clearly states: The dignity of all persons shall be inviolable.”
FROM I.F. Joe Awuah Jnr. Kumasi