NINE REMANDED IN BAWKU (PAGE 34)

Story: Benjamin Xornam Glover, Bolgatanga

NINE out of the 13 people being prosecuted before a Bolgatanga Magistrate Court, presided over by Mr Abdul Hakeem, for their alleged involvement in the recent fighting in Bawku have been remanded into prison custody.
Three of the remaining four were granted bail on account of their being juveniles, while the last person was not in court because he was on admission at the Bolgatanga Regional Hospital seeking medical attention.
The pleas of those who were in court yesterday were not taken and they will appear again on May 21, 2008.
The first case that came up for hearing was against Dramani Mohammed, Ibrahim Musah, Aziz Apanga, Naba Ndezure, Yakobu Bukari and Seidu Sule, who did not turn up because he was on hospital admission.
They were charged with breach of curfew and rioting with weapons such as rifles and machetes.
Prosecuting, Detective Inspector John Agyuah told the court that the accused persons were spotted by security personnel on patrol duties in Bawku on May 5 with guns, machetes and other offensive weapons and firing indiscriminately, way after a new curfew time of 9.00 a.m. to 7.00 a.m. had been imposed.
He said the security personnel managed to arrest the six offenders and later sent them to the office of the Criminal Investigations Department in Bolgatanga for questioning.
He said considering the volatile situation in Bawku, he was appealing to the court to remand the accused persons in prison custody, while investigations continued, adding that the police were working around the clock to retrieve more weapons.
Counsel for the accused persons, Mr Cletus Avoka, said much as everyone was disturbed about the situation in Bawku and was committed to helping the security agencies to curb the situation, innocent persons should not suffer punishment unjustly.
He argued that the facts put out by the prosecution connecting the accused persons to the disturbances were far from the truth.
“It was true that there was a curfew in place on the said day. However, the people in Bawku did not know, let alone hear, about it. Normally, the Information Service van would move from street to street to announce the curfew but this was not done. Therefore, most people did not hear about it,” he said.
He argued further that the accused persons were arrested in their homes and not in the streets, as claimed by the prosecution, and prayed the court to grant them bail.
The court, after hearing both arguments, ruled that considering the volatile situation, the accused persons be remanded in prison custody to appear again on May 21.
The court, however, granted the third accused, Aziz Apanga, 17, bail in the sum of GH¢2,000 with two sureties on account of his age.
In the second case heard in the same court, five suspects — Fuseini Abidin, Ndego Abduraman, Issah Abugrago, Ndego Samed and Seidu Hamidu — were charged with the offence of rioting with weapons.
Presenting his facts, Detective Inspector Agyuah said security personnel on duty following renewed fighting in Bawku on Monday heard gunshots and decided to move to the scene.
He said when the security men were getting closer to the scene, the accused persons, including others now on the run, maintained their position on seeing the security men and opened fire on them.
He said that went on for some time until their ammunition ran out and they were later arrested with the AK 47 rifle. They were later transferred to the Regional CID in Bolgatanga for investigations.
Mr Avoka, who was counsel for the accused persons, faulted the facts, saying they were far from the truth. He questioned how five men could fire one single rifle at the same time.
He also contended that Abidin and Abduraman were juveniles and pleaded with the court to grant them bail.
The court, after hearing both sides, granted Abidin and Abduraman bail in the sum of GH¢3,000 each and remanded the rest in prison custody.
The next person to appear before the same court was Nuhu Fuseini, who was charged with unlawful possession of a fire arm and ammunition
Detective Agyuah told the court that while the joint military and police commander and his team were on duty in Bawku on May 5, they came across the accused person who was holding a Sten gun number 5404 which he was firing indiscriminately. The team, he said, managed to overpower him and retrieved the weapon, which had 16 rounds of ammunition left in it.
He prayed the court to remand the suspect, while the police conducted further investigations.
Mr Avoka, counsel for the accused, pleaded with the court to grant his client bail, arguing that he was a juvenile, to which the prosecutor protested, saying the accused person had claimed in his statement to the police that he was 20 and not 15, as claimed by counsel.
Mr Avoka further said on the day in question people were vacating their homes out of fear. He said when the shooting intensified, the accused person also decided to flee to a nearby village and in the process of fleeing he had sought refuge in a nearby house.
It was there that he had seen the gun lying by. Just then the security men came around and, out of fear of being beaten, he had admitted that the weapon was his.
The court remanded the accused person in prison custody to appear again on the next adjourned date.
The last person to appear before the same court was Haruna Ibrahim, who was charged with murder.
The prosecution said on May 5, at Kariyama, a suburb of Bawku, while security personnel were on patrol duties, they spotted the accused person and other accomplices who were alleged to have beheaded one Muniru Adams.
He said the other suspects managed to flee but Haruna was apprehended, while the body of the beheaded man was deposited at the Bolgatanga Regional Hospital.
He added that efforts were underway to arrest the other culprits.
Counsel for the accused, Mr Avoka, said his client was a victim of mistaken identity, adding that the suspects hailed from Pusiga and not Bawku, as claimed by the prosecution.
He said on the day of the incident, the accused had been riding a bicycle into Bawku when he saw a lot of people running so he jumped off his bicycle but he was arrested by the security men.
The court, however, remanded Ibrahim in prison custody to appear again on May 21, 2008.
Meanwhile, the rest of the people arrested on Monday will appear in court today.