He threatened to kill my girl - Father of kidnapped Takoradi girl

Alexander Kojo Koranchie, father of Priscilla Mantebea Koranchie, one of the three kidnapped girls in the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis, has revealed that the prime suspect in the kidnapping cases once called him and threatened to kill his daughter.

This was immediately after the 28-year-old Nigerian suspected kidnapper, Samuel Udoetuk Wills, had kidnapped her daughter on December 21, 2018, at a spot near Nkroful Junction in the metropolis.

The father indicated that the Nigerian suspect, who was staying around the same vicinity at where he (Mr Koranchie) resided at Kansaworodo-West Fijai area, also warned him not to report the case to the police if he wanted to see his daughter alive.

Mr Koranchie noted that the suspect then demanded various sums of money from him with a pledge to release his daughter.

He said though he paid a ransom of GH¢1,000 to Udoetuk through mobile money, he failed to release Priscilla.

He said after the suspect had escaped from police cells, he kept on calling him for extra money but he refused since he had already reported the case to the police.

It would be recalled that during the trial of the prime suspect at the Takoradi Magistrate Court, police presented a scarf and a dress belonging to 15-year-old Priscilla Koranchie, which was found at the hideout of the suspect which proved that he was a kidnapper.

Mr Koranchie told DAILY GUIDE that afterwards members of the Medical Women Association of Ghana (MWAG) visited parents of the three victims in their respective homes.

Victim’s mother’s blood pressure rises

At the home of Madam Comfort Arhin, mother of Ruth Love Quayson, one of the victims, her blood pressure had gone up, according to medical reports.

Doctors who conducted a test on her attributed it to the trauma she was undergoing from her missing daughter.

Medical women

The National President of the association, Dr Marion Okoh-Owusu, noted that the members were hopeful that their visit would go a long way to enhance the mental health and wellbeing of the family members.

“As an association, our focus since we heard about this unfortunate situation is that we will facilitate the process whereby the family members will have access to counseling”, she stressed.

She noted, “This is a very stressful period and so professional counseling by a professional psychologist, we believe, is in the right direction to support the family to cope with this very difficult time”.

“So we have contracted a Clinical Psychologist at the Effia-Nkwanta Regional Hospital in Sekondi to counsel the affected family members and that the cost would be borne by the women doctors”, she added.

She pointed out that the women doctors remained optimistic that the girls would come home to their families.

Other members of the association who were part of the visiting team included Dr Nana Esi Gaisie, Dr Salamatu Mohammed and Dr Irene Ayimadu. They also visited the home of the parents of Priscilla Bentum.

The kidnapped cases

The first victim, Priscilla Blessing Bentum, 21, a third year student of the University of Education, Winneba, lived with her parents at Diabene, near Takoradi. She was kidnapped on August 17, 2018, at Kansaworodo.

The second victim, Ruth Love Quayson, 18, had just completed Fijai Senior High School in Sekondi and lived with her parents at Diabene, near Sekondi. She was kidnapped on December 4, 2018, at Butumegyabu (BU) Junction in Takoradi.

In the case of the third victim, Priscilla Mantebea Koranchie, 15, a first-year student of Sekondi College, she was kidnapped on December 21, 2018, at a spot near Nkroful junction.

Suspect’s arrest

On December 22, 2018, at about 4am, Samuel Udoetuk Wills, a 28-year-old Nigerian national, was arrested in connection with the kidnappings. According to the police, catalogues of calls between the accused and the victims were analyzed and police established his link to the three cases.