Fulani slashes butcher with cutlass

Sunyani, Feb 29, GNA - A magistrate court in Sunyani on Tuesday granted 1,000 Ghana cedis bail to a Fulani herdsman, Osumani Haruna, for inflicting deep cutlass wounds on Sulemana Fusani, a 24 year-old butcher, at Yawhima near Sunyani.

Osumani, 34, pleaded not guilty to the charge of causing harm and was ordered to re-appear before the court on March 3. Police Sergeant Augustine Kingsley Oppong told the court presided by Mr. Albert Zoogah that on December 4 last year the accused brought a female cow to the victim at Zongo for him to buy. He said Sulemana became suspicious about the low price of 600 Ghana cedis for the animal so asked the herdsman to tie the animal under a tree in the house so that they could bargain well the following day. The prosecutor said Sulemana woke up in the morning to find the animal missing so went to the accused at Yawhima to inform him but could not meet the Osumani so left a message to be delivered to him. On receiving the message the accused suspected that Sulemana had released the animal and had hatched a plan to kill him to cover the deal.

Sergeant Oppong said Osumani asked Sulemana to accompany him to Abinga village, near Yawhima to search for the animal but on their way the accused used a cutlass he was holding to inflict wounds on the victim.

Sulemana took to his heels when he realized that the accused intended to kill him and reported the matter to the police and was issued with a medical from to attend hospital. He was admitted at the regional hospital in Sunyani for some days and discharged. The accused was arrested by the police and during interrogation revealed that he stole the cow from a farm at Yawhima where he was once a care taker.