Court grants bail to Tuobodom chief

Sunyani (B/A) March 11, GNA - The Sunyani Magistrate court 'B', on Wednesday granted GHC 10,000 self recognisance bail each with surety to Nana Baffour Asare II, Omanhene of Tuobodom and Samuel Adjei Boahen his secretary.

Nana Asare and Boahen are standing trial at the court presided over by Mr. Joseph Mensah for abetment of crime and attempted murder. They would reappear on March 16.

The two were in court for allegedly aiding and abetting Kwaku Addae, Appiah Kusi Kwabena Marcus, Seth Boadu, Kwaku Abraham and others now at large to commit murder. The presiding judge ordered that all prosecution witnesses must be arranged for the trial to commence in the next adjournment. Police Sergeant Faustina Anaman, prosecuting told the court that the complainants are the chiefs and errand boys serving under the traditional command of the Omanhene of Techiman Oseadeyo Akumfi Ameyaw IV. She said at about 1300 hours of October 8, 2008 the Omanhene of Techiman was on his way to Tuobodom to attend the annual yam festival. On reaching the outskirt of Tuobodom near the Seventh Day Adventist School, a mob mounted a road block and fired gun shots indiscriminately from a nearby bush under the command of the two accused persons. Sgt. Anaman said two young men, Kwame Ameyaw and Stephen Afrifa who were in the convoy of Oseadeyo Akumfi Ameyaw's sustained gun shots wounds and were rushed to the Techiman Holy Family Hospital where they treated and discharged.

She said on February 16, this year, the five suspects were arrested and had been remanded in prison custody to reappear on March 17. Nana Obiri Boahen, counsel for the accused persons described the attack on Oseadeyo Akumfi Ameyaw's convoy as barbaric and primitive, which should not be tolerated.

He pleaded to the court to grant self recognisance bail to his clients since they were being tried for abetment of crime. Nana Boahen intimated that his clients were not arrested but kidnapped by some able-bodied men from Techiman. He explained that he was travelling to the Wenchi High Court with his clients when six men arrived with a car, abducted the chief and his secretary and send them to the Techiman palace. Nana Boahen alleged that the kidnappers tied the Omanhene, stripped him naked and subjected him to severe beatings, whilst his secretary was also tortured.

He said the Techiman police rescued the Omanhene and his secretary from their attackers.

"It is so painful, pathetic and worrisome for a paramount chief to be striped nakedly in public," Nana Boahen told the court. On Friday March 6, three people were shot dead whilst four others including a police man sustained gun shots wounds when violence broke out between supporters of the two traditional factions at Tuobodom in the Techiman Municipality of the Brong Ahafo Region.

The sporadic shooting incidents started when some young men abducted Nana Asare and his secretary and subjected them to severe beatings. Relative calm had since returned to the town after the Regional Security Council deployed a contingent of 92 military and police personnel to restore peace in the area.