Fresh charges against Professor Benneh’s murder suspects

The Police on Wednesday substituted and proferred fresh charges on two suspects allegedly involved in the murder of Professor Emmanuel Yaw Benneh, the law lecturer who was murdered in cold blood at his residence at Agyiriganor in Accra.

In the new charge sheet, Ebenezer Kwayisi aka Junior, a 25-year-old mason apprentice has now been charged with murder.

Opambour Agya Badu Nkansah also known as Enoch and Kwayisi have been jointly held for conspiracy to commit murder.

This was after the prime suspect James Nana Womba passed on whiles in Police custody.

The pleas of all the accused were not taken and they have been remanded into Police custody to reappear on February 4, 2021.

Counsel for the accused repeated their application for bail but the court refused on the grounds that it did not have the jurisdiction to grant it.

The Prosecution led by Inspector Ebenezer Teye – Okuffo told the court presided over by Ms. Ama Adomako Kwakye that, Akosua Benneh-Akuffo, complainant is the niece of the late Prof Emmanuel Yaw Benneh, the victim in this case whilst James Nana Womba, a prime suspect, now deceased was a cleaner in the deceased’s house at Adjiringanor.

He said Womba’s accomplices, Opambour Agya Badu Nkansah is unemployed and lives at Ashaiman, Accra and Ebenezer Kwayisi a mason apprentice also resides at Kasoa.

Prosecution said, on September 12, last year about 0800 hours, the victim was found lying dead in a pool of blood in a corridor leading to his bedroom, lying in prone position with his hands tied behind him with a white rope and his legs also tied with a green rope just below the knees.

He said examination on the body of the victim revealed multiple marks of assault on the face with a cloth partly inserted in his mouth.

Prosecution said the Police found on the scene a hand glove, a white rope with blood stains and blood stains on the walls.

Prosecution said, Police Crime Scene Management Team examined the scene and lifted a visible blood tainted thumb impression on the wall close to where the victim’s body laid.

The Prosecution said the body was deposited at the Police Hospital Mortuary for preservation and autopsy.

Inspector Teye-Okuffo said on September 21, last year, the post mortem examination was conducted on the victim’s body and the pathologist gave immediate cause of death as “Asphyxiation, Strangulation and suspected Homicide”.

He said on September 13, last year, James Nana Womba, now deceased was arrested for investigation and his finger prints was taken and sent to Finger Print Section of CID Headquarters for examination.

He said the result from the headquarters indicated the fingerprints captured at the crime scene was identical to that of the deceased, Womba.

The Prosecution told the court that Womba confessed to the crime during investigation and mentioned Nkansah and Kwayisi as his accomplices who were later arrested at their various hideouts for investigation.

Inspector Teye-Okuffo informed the court that investigation revealed that during the month of August last year, Womba contacted Opambour and hatched a plan to murder the victim in his house, so Womba assigned Opambour to recruit a gang to execute the plan.

He said two weeks later, the deceased, Womba had a change of mind and contacted Kwayisi to assist him execute the plan.

Prosecution told the court that Ebenezer Kwayisi agreed and visited Womba who both discussed in detail how the plan was going to be carried out and on September 10, last year, the accused went to the victim’s house and executed their plan by killing the professor.

The Prosecution said the accused in their investigation cautioned statements narrated how each of them conspired with Womba to kill the victim and that a duplicate case docket has been forwarded to Attorney General’s Department for advice.