The Evangelist and others charged to court
A Magistrate Court sitting in Bolgatanga area of Ghana, has
remanded into prison custody a self-styled Evangelist, and four others
for accusing and detaining three accused witches in Duusi, a suburb of
Tongo in the Talensi district of the Upper East Region of North Ghana.
This comes after four members of the same family were on Wednesday
remanded for the lynching of an alleged ‘witch’ at Yenboka Kenna, a town
in Pelungu, Ghana.
The five suspects identified as Evangelist Akwesi Ali Baba 29, Douk
Sapark 30, Messiah Somlate 25, Mba Gurang 40, Malpayah Mbayin 27 and
one Tarabon, currently at large were arrested and subsequently arraigned
on Thursday, 15th June 2017.
They accused Bayeta Kiimbey, Ateensage Ziyaaba and Sagteg Yamboreya of witchcraft.
The court held that on 6th June 2017, the Evangelist Akwesi Ali
Baba accused the complainants of being ‘witches’ and based on that, the
accused persons were attacked and threatened with death by some irate
persons led by Tarebon.
The accused persons managed to escape and reported the matter to the chief of Gaare, Naab Yamboreya Gbmere.
The chief Naab Yamboreya, kept the accused persons at his palace
for safety for three days, before calling on the police to rescue them.
Following the chief’s decision, the four suspects including the one
at large unlawfully entered the rooms of the accused persons and
destroyed properties in search of supposed witch-pots and other items
they believed were used to bewitch people as claimed by the evangelist.
They were later arrested by the police and arraigned.
The state prosecutor, Mr. Gilbert Boateng Addae, prayed the court
to remand the suspects into prison custody to enable police complete
investigations for their trial.
The presiding judge of the Bolgatanga Magistrate Court, His Worship
Osman Abdul-Hakin, granted the request of the prosecutor and remanded
the suspects into prison custody.
According to Citi News, they are to appear in court on the 30th of June 2017.