A nephew of ex-President Jerry Rawlings who fled the country weeks into his trial over the death of a Tema-based taxi driver in August 1999 is presently cooling off in Illinois, a city in the American State of Minnesota, leaving security personnel in the cold.
Weeks of investigations conducted by Chronicle have confirmed that Emmanuel Nii Duodo Addy, nee Agbotui, 26, who allegedly struck Akwasi Kumah with a killer-punch in a road-rage incident leading to his death, left the country in January, this year.
Close friends of Addy in Tema Community 8 also corroborated this during interviews with Chronicle's undercover team.
The fugitive is standing trial on a manslaughter charge over the death of the 22-year-old father of two, contrary to section 50 of the criminal code, Act 29, 1960 and is believed to be staying with relatives in the city legendary for its high Ghanaian population.
Chronicle learnt that Addy, who is a member of the much-dreaded 64th battalion and personal body guard of his grandmother, Madam Agbotui, the mother of Rawlings, was due to travel to the United States for studies on the day of the incident.
This, apparently, was his parting message to his friends as they confirmed to the Chronicle, Kumah's death scuttled the earlier trip.
Particulars of the offence as captured in the bill of indictment state that Addy "caused the death of Akwasi Kumah by unlawful harm."
Director of Public Prosecutions, Osafo Sampong told the Chronicle during our investigations that he is yet to receive an official confirmation of the story.
When proved that Addy has left the jurisdiction, Sampong disclosed his outfit would inform the court for the necessary direction and action.
However, follow-up enquiries conducted at the Attorney-General's Office have revealed that the bill of indictment committing Addy for trial at the high court was issued on the 1st of June 2000 after preliminary hearings by the Tema Community Tribunal.
The bill, signed by Mrs. Margaret Ahiadeke, a State Attorney, officially charged the accused with manslaughter, a charge he has denied. This replaced the initial charge of murder preferred against him.
In his statement to the police, he said he never slapped the deceased. Rather it was the deceased who tried to hit him. "I dodged to his side and all of a sudden, I saw that he lost his balance and went down on his back."
His statement has been hotly contested by a friend of the deceased who happened to be in the taxicab, with registration number BA 7831 C, on the day of the incident.
In his statement to the police, James Quayson, who is also a prosecution witness, stated that the accused slapped the deceased without provocation over a traffic incident.
According to him, the deceased slowed down at a spot near Site Three area, which inconvenienced the accused, who was driving a Suzuki Land cruiser with registration number GR 6792 F.
Both occupants in the taxicab, according to Quayson, made signs of apology and drove off, but the accused appeared dissatisfied with the apology and pursued them.
Quayson said the accused eventually caught up with them and stopped right in front of the taxicab at a spot near the Tema Development Corporation (TDC) mini market.
There again, Quayson said he, together with the deceased, got down to apologize but the accused pushed him aside and slapped the deceased.
He said with the slap the deceased fell on his back and started to bleed from the mouth. Realizing the situation, he assisted the accused in conveying the deceased to the Port Clinic where he later died.
Meanwhile, several months after the incident the two young children of the deceased are out of school. Samuel and Titus, aged 8 and 6 respectively, are staying with their grandmother Aunti Esi Atta at Tema Community 2.
She told the Chronicle she was struggling to take care of the children, as she was not engaged in any viable economic venture.
