A 20-year-old student who slashed the right upper arm of a friend in a "juju" fortification ritual leading to his death, has been jailed three years by a High Court after a seven-member jury returned a verdict of guilty of manslaughter against him.
The High Court took into consideration the fact that the accused had already served three-and-half years in lawful custody.
Mr. Moses Tsiteh, the herbalist who provided the two with the so-called 'juju' was acquitted and discharged on the verdict of not guilty by the jury.
At about 7a.m. on October 16, 2006, Christian Adzaklo Morkporkpoh, the student convict was accompanied by Mr. Bright Addo, the deceased to a place called Nom Lava, near Tsito, to see a self-styled herbalist, Moses Tsiteh, to provide them with a 'juju' to fortify themselves against cutlass wounds.
Mrs. Comfort Tasiame, State Attorney, told the court that after the performance of the rituals, Tsiteh gave the cutlass to the deceased to test the efficacy of the juju by slashing the upper right arm of Morkporkpoh. This the deceased did and he did not sustain any cut.
When Morporkpoh took his turn and slashed the upper right arm of the deceased, he sustained a deep cut and later bled to death.
