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Even though, the Ghana Armed Forces claim that the Sunday killing of a civilian at the Ashiaman market had been accidental after the deceased victim attempted to disarm a soldier on duty, eyewitnesses are saying otherwise.
People who say they were there when the killing took place recount that the officer involved had aimed his gun at the victim and shot him at close range.
Due to the aim, the bullet blew out the back of the head of the victim who died instantly.
A pregnant woman, who told Accra based Joy FM that the freak show nearly induced a miscarriage, also reveals the horrific killing caused extreme discomfort among those nearby.
“I was here, I saw everything… when the soldier returned from his car, we thought he was going to whip the boy again, but he cocked his gun. We thought he was going to give a warning shot, however, he aimed at his neck and fired. The bullet came out of the back of his head. I instantly felt like urinating and nearly miscarried,’ the eye witness whose name was not given narrated in halting English.
A second eye witness, a male, narrates that before the soldier would shoot, he had disengaged from an earlier confrontation with the victim whom he had given three lashes, and paced to a car nearby where he had placed a call on his mobile phone.
“I heard, somebody just answered that “fire;” he returned from the car cocked the gun and fired at the boy. We want to know who gave that order for him to fire. This is Ashiaman, Ashiaman is a different town,” he said in Pidgin English.
According to the cumulative picture created by the eyewitnesses, the victim who was a truck-pusher that lived in the Ashiaman market had been working out with some stones in the market when the officer, on deployment under Operation Covid-Safety approached and confronted him.
The officer had reportedly picked a stick and whipped the victim twice, and upon the third crack of the whip, the victim held on it and yanked it away.
The officer promptly disengaged and placed a telephone call while pacing away towards a car parked nearby and returned with what could be described as a premeditated shooting that killed the victim.
However, following the incident, the Public Affairs Department of the Military High Command, released a statement claiming that the unarmed civilian had attempted to disarm the officer and in the process of a struggle, the officer’s gun had triggered off.
Col. Aggrey Quarshie, Director of Public Affairs, Ghana Armed Forces wrote; “the Ghana Armed Forces is investigating an incident that occurred in Ashaiman, Accra, on Sunday 5th April, 2020.
“The incident involved an attempt by a civilian to disarm a soldier who was conducting an arrest as part of Operation COVID-Safety.
“The civilian was being arrested on suspicion of indulging in illegal conduct contrary to the Narcotics Act.
“Initial reports are that the suspect in resisting arrest attempted to disarm the soldier leading to a struggle during which the soldier’s rifle accidentally went off.
“The suspect sustained life-threatening injuries and while being conveyed to the hospital for medical attention, unfortunately, passed on. The body has been deposited at the Police Hospital morgue in Accra. Investigations have already commenced into the incident and the Ghana Armed Forces wish to assure the general public that details of its investigations would be duly communicated.”
However, the eyewitnesses who have spoken to the media say the claim in the Military’s statement was untrue.
MP for Ashaiman, Ernest Norgbey has raised a similar protest saying the Military, by the statement, had already began a process to cover up the heinous crime committed by the officer involved.
The MP has demanded an independent investigation into the matter. “independent investigation because when you look at the statement that the Military has put out, it will pre-empt, it will tell you the findings of their investigation before their investigation will come out. Because if they can tell you that the man was found offending the narcotic rules for that matter and he was struggling with the Military officer and the rifle went off you can predict what the outcome will be.”