West Hills Mall killing: 'Police never gave family option of private autopsy' - Jomoro MP

The Member of Parliament (MP) for Jomoro Constituency in the Western Region, Dorcas Toffey, has rebutted claims by the police that the family of Shadrach Arloo, the young man who was allegedly tasered to death by a police officer and a security guard at the West Hills Mall, was given the option to do an autopsy at a private facility of their choice.

This goes against what the police said in a statement after the autopsy report of the dead person was given to them.

In a statement, the police said as part of the investigation process, on February 3, 2023, the police pathologist held a meeting with interested parties in the case to explain the post-mortem examination to them.

It noted that present from the deceased side were Madam Dorcas Toffey (Hon. MP, Jomoro), Mr. Kofi Armah Buah (Hon. MP, Ellembele), Mr. Francis-Xavier Kojo Sosu (Hon. MP, Madina) Mr. Amo Blay and Madam Ama Cobbina. Mr. Alfred Osei Boafo was also present for the accused person, Osei Kwame Boafo.

The Police stated that,”At the meeting, the parties were given the option to have the post-mortem examination conducted by a pathologist of their choice, but they all agreed that the Police Pathologist should conduct the examination.”

The Police noted that on February 7, 2023, a post-mortem examination was conducted on the deceased’s body in the presence of Alfred Boafo, father of the accused, Dr. Rosana Polinicio Segborwortso, pathologist of GA East Municipal Hospital, representing the accused, Mr. Francis Xavier Sosu lawyer for the deceased, Louis Melabah Edeafor, uncle of the deceased, Isaac Anim Anno, father of the deceased; and Anna Cobbina, sister of the deceased.

“The pathologist gave the verbal cause of death as asphyxiation and obstruction of airway by a foreign body.” He also recovered eight (8) zipped bags containing dry leaves suspected to be narcotic drugs tied in a piece of black polythene from the deceased’s throat. “The retrieved, suspected narcotic substances tested positive for cannabis when submitted for forensic examination, in the presence of all the interested parties,” the police stated.

Read Also: West Hills Mall killing: Victim swallowed narcotic substances-Autopsy report

But speaking on Atinka TV‘s Current Affairs Programme, “The Agenda,” with Nana Yaw Fianko, the Jomoro MP, Dorcas Toffey said she was surprised to see the highlighted version in the statement by the police.

Recounting the series of events, she said she was personally at the hospital with the family of the deceased, where they all engaged the pathologist on the process of the autopsy.

According to the Jomoro MP, even though the family wished to have the autopsy done at a private facility, they were not given that option, saying that it is never true that they were given that option.

“It was never so.” The part where they said they gave us the option of doing the autopsy at a place of our choice was never true. In fact, they were going to do it alone, but the family members insisted that they would not trust the police to do the autopsy alone. I was there, so at this point in time, the pathologist said the family can do the autopsy at a private facility and present the report to them. “Where can you say this?” she quizzed.

She stressed that, “The family would have loved to do so because that was their wish, but because they did not have the option to do it, that is why they insisted that I talk to the pathologist about it, so it was myself and Hon. Buah who spoke to them and the pathologist agreed that it would be okay for us to do so, but even with that, even after the whole thing is done, through them, if we are not satisfied, we can do a second one at a place of our choice, but with the first one, they never gave us that option, so I was surprised to see that on the report or the statement.

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