Three granted to bail in abortion case

Accra, Sept. 3, GNA - Three persons who allegedly performed an abortion on a 15-year old girl, resulting in her death, were on Friday admitted to 25 million cedis bail with two sureties each by the Osu District Magistrate Court.

They were Samuel Nana Danquah, 53, security man, Patience Badza, trader, 27 and Samuel Laryea Badza, driver 21 and boyfriend of Diana Nkulenu, the deceased.

Danquah was charged with causing abortion, while Patience and Laryea were charged with abetment of crime. Their pleas were not been taken and would re-appear on October 5.

The court chaired by Mrs Doris Bimpong asked the accused persons to report to the Nima Divisional Police twice in a week. When the court enquired of the post mortem report on the deceased, prosecution said it was not ready.

Defence counsel in his repeated plea for bail said the charges against the accused persons did not fall under offences for which bail should be refused.

According to the defence, the duplicate docket, forwarded to the Attorney General's Department for advice, would take some time.

The case of the prosecution was that Patience and Laryea were siblings who lived in the same house with the deceased and her parents. On July 11, this year, the deceased left home unceremoniously until July 14, when her father heard that she had been taken to the La Polyclinic for treatment.

Prosecution said when the deceased's father went to the Polyclinic he was told that his daughter had been transferred to Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital as result of her critical condition.

He said the father of the deceased went to the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital and met Patience and Laryea with his daughter.

Prosecution said during a conversation with the two accused persons, the deceased's father got to know that his daughter was impregnated by Laryea who took her (deceased) to Danquah who lived at Nima for an abortion in a hotel.

The prosecutor said the case was reported to the medical officer on duty who alerted the hospital security men to arrest Laryea and escorted him to the Korle Bu Police Station.

When Patience was later arrested, she led the Police to arrest Danquah and during a search in his room the police found syringes, unidentified medicines, a pair of scissors, cotton wool and plaster. 03 Sept. 04