Three remanded for lynching suspected plantain thief

The Mankessim District Magistrate Court has remanded three persons into prison custody for a month for allegedly lynching a neighbour suspected to be a plantain thief at Mankessim Krofu in the Central Region.

The suspects have been identified as Isaac Osei, 25, John Amissah, 39, and Samuel Ampah, 54.

The incident took place on Saturday, May 7, 2022, at a bush near the Mankessim Health Center.

The deceased has been identified as Caleb Ocran, a resident at Mankessim Krofu.

The deceased, who was tied to a palm tree and stoned to death by the suspects, was among a gang of four who were alleged to have been stealing goats and farm produce in the community.

During their last robbery operation, three members of the gang escaped when being pursued by the suspects but luck eluded Caleb Ocran, who received instant justice upon apprehension.

Police, however, retrieved one of the suspects’ phones from the crime scene.

Upon switching on the phone, the suspects called claiming ownership of it, so they were asked to meet at an agreed location to collect it.

On Wednesday, May 25, a team of community police and uniformed officers were deployed to effect their arrest when the suspects showed up to collect their missing phone.

Upon police interrogation, the suspects confessed to having committed the crime, indicating that the deceased and his colleagues once stole their goat, but attempts to catch them were unsuccessful.

They further told the Mankessim police that when they had the opportunity to catch the deceased during the failed robbery expedition, they were compelled to lynch him, adding that the plantain found at the scene was deliberately put there to mislead the public.

The Court, presided over by Her Worship Bernice Mawusi, refused to admit the plea of the trio and remanded them into prison custody to reappear on July 1, 2022.