Court orders Kombian to open defence

Johnson Kombian, the businessman and a farmer who is being held for the death of two policemen in the Northern Region, has been asked to open his defence. This was after prosecution had closed its case before an Accra Fast Track High Court on Thursday, presided over by Mr Justice Mustapha Habib Logoh.

Prosecution called six witnesses to make their case. Meanwhile Kombian’s counsel, Mr George Asamaney, has prayed the court to make an order so that his client, who is at Ankaful Prisons in the Central Region, could be brought to Nsawam Medium Prisons.

According to counsel this is to enable him to prepare his client so that he could open his defence. However, when the court enquired from the prison officers who escorted Kombian to court to find where the accused person was being kept on remand, a Prison Officer told the court that Kombian had been at Nsawam Medium Prison since the trial commenced.

Defence counsel apologetically withdrew his submissions saying he was not aware of that else he would not have made those submissions. Counsel has indicated to the court that Kombian was going to call two witnesses from Nankpanduri to testify for him.

Earlier Dr Alinan Rodriguez Grilan, a Pathologist from the Police Hospital, mounted the witness box. Led in evidence by Mrs Marina Appiah Opare, Principal State Attorney, Dr Grilan told the court that Constables Prince Agyare and Owusu Frimpong died as a result of gun shots.

She noted that the deceased had multiple traumatic injuries and lost so much blood from the gun shots. Dr Grilan tendered the post mortem results of the two policemen to court, indicating that she performed the post mortem on October 25, 2010 after they had been identified by their relations.

Additionally, the pathologist, who had practiced for 32 years, said the investigator, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Hanson Gove, gave history and background of how the two policemen died.

In a cross examination, Dr Grilan, who had worked with the Hospital for the past four years, said she could not tell who killed the two police officers stressing that she only conducted medical examination on the bodies and nothing else. She said history of the deceased was given to her by the investigator and that if there were changes in them she could not tell.

‘’My Lord if Kombian was described as a ‘’notorious armed robber’’ I can’t tell, Dr Grilan said. DSP Gove, the case investigator, was discharged by the court after he had answered a number of questions.

DSP Gove told the court that it was Lance Corporal Samuel Adinkra and ASP M. Abudulai who collected the 24 spent shells at the crime scene on the main Nanpkanduri Road. The investigator said empty shells of the deceased and their surviving colleague were not retrieved.

He admitted that Constables Agyare and Owusu Frimpong also fired and that they made several distress calls to the Police. According to DSP Gove, Kombian in his caution statement, indicated that he was not around when the incident happened.

DSP Gove maintained that Kombian was around when the incident happened as the deceased had mentioned Kombian’s name as the one who shot them. Kombian and his accomplices, who are on the run, were alleged to have ambushed the three policemen. Two of the policemen, Constables Prince Agyare and Owusu Frimpong, however, died during the ambush.

Kombian has denied before a seven-member jury the charge of conspiracy, and two counts of killing the two police officers. He has been remanded by the court. Hearing continues on July 24.