One of two alleged accomplices in the murder of the late University of Ghana Law Professor, Emmanuel Yaw Benneh, has been discharged.
The Kaneshie district court (Criminal Division) discharged Opambour Agya Badu Nkansah for want of prosecution after prosecutors had told the court that the Attorney General had lost interest in the suspect.
It is not clear if the discharge is also an acquittal but Badu Nkansah’s lawyer, Mr Emmanuel Labra Amah, is quoted as saying that his position that his client was innocent has been vindicated.
The suspect’s mother is also quoted as saying, “I am grateful to God for my son. I don’t have anything to say,” after she had given her son hugs.
Nkansah had been one of two alleged accomplices of main suspect James Nana Womba, who died while in Police custody. The other is Ebenezer Quaisie, aka Junior.
Prosecuting Inspector Ebenezer Teye Okuffo, had told the Court presided over by Ms Ama Adomako that, “The Attorney General’s advice is ready and per the advice dated on March 2, this year, Opambour Agya Badu Nkansah should not be charged.”
However, Ebenezer Quaisie, aka, Junior, a 25-year-old mason, will be charged with abetment of crime to wit murder.
The Court, therefore, discharged Opambour and struck out the charge preferred against him for want of prosecution.
In February this year, the prosecution, informed the court that a comprehensive duplicate docket on Professor Benneh, who was murdered at his residence at Agyriganor had been forwarded to the Attorney-General’s Department for advice.
Inspector Ebenezer Teye-Okuffo said the Police was then waiting for directives from the AG’s office.
The Police had held two suspects, namely, Ebenezer Quaisie and Opambour Agya Badu Nkansah for their involvement in the murder of the law lecturer, following the death of the prime suspect, James Nana Womba, in Police custody, who was the house boy of the late Prof. Benneh.
The innocence of Badu Nkansah only serves to stir up already existing suspicion that Prof. Benneh had been murdered by some high-ups in society or government.
The Law don who had been seen dead with hands tied in his Agyiringanor home on September 12 2020 was said to be writing a book in which serious revelations about some important people in society were captured.
Manuscripts of that book are said to have been taken away by his murderers who also allegedly dumped a computer he was working on into a manhole.
Womba who was a cleaner in the deceased’s house at Agyiringanor would allegedly confess to the Police during the investigation that he murdered his boss and that Nkansah and Kwayisi were his accomplices.
Prosecution Inspector Teye-Okuffo had told the Court that investigations revealed that during August last year, Womba contacted Opambour and hatched a plan to murder the victim in his house, so Womba assigned Opambour to recruit a gang to execute the plan.
Two weeks later, the deceased, Womba had a change of mind and contacted Kwayisi to assist him to execute the plan.
The accused in their investigative cautioned statements narrated how each of them conspired with Womba to kill the victim.
However, Womba suddenly died while in custody. And now, Nkansah, his supposed accomplice, has also been discharged by the court because the AG does not think he is a viable suspect.