The United States Embassy in Accra facilitated the ‘unlocking’ and extraction of information from two mobile phones, belonging to slain undercover journalist, Ahmed Hussein Suale, in the United States of America.
The mobile phones, iPhone 7 plus and Huawei smart phone were ‘worked on’ by forensic experts in the United States upon a request by the Ghana Police Service (GPS).
This came to light on Monday, July 26, when the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Mr Godfred Yeboah Dame appeared to answer questions asked of him by North Tongu Member of Parliament (MP), Mr Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, regarding unresolved murders in the country.
Mr Dame told Parliament that a request letter for the retrieval of information from the devices was sent on July 17, 2020 to the U.S Embassy in Accra.
On August 11, 2020, the minister said that the phones were taken to the U.S through the Embassy.
“In February 2021, the American Regional Security Officer, Bill Peiler, successfully handed over the two iPhone 7 plus Huawei smart phone belonging to the murdered investigative journalist Ahmed Suale together with external drive containing the data extracted from the phones to the investigator,” Mr Dame said.
According to him, the huge volumes of data comprising millions of documents, videos, texts and WhatsApp messages were being analysed by a team from the Homicide and Cyber Crime Units of the GPS.
While noting that investigations on the other aspects of the matter were ongoing, the Attorney-General stated that progress was being made.
The late Suale, 31, was a lead undercover investigative journalist with Tiger Eye PI, an investigative firm in Accra.
The firm investigated the “Number 12 Exposé”, which exposed the illicit conduct of top football administrators in Ghana.
The expose, conducted between 2016 and 2017 exposed senior officials of the Ghana Football Association (GFA) including Kwesi Nyantakyi, then President of GFA and Abdulai Alhassan, former Chairman of the Northern Regional Football Association and many others.
The “Number 12” documentary was aired at the National Theater, Accra in June 2018.
On January 6, 2019, the deceased paid a visit to his relatives in their family house at Madina New Road, near Queen of Peace Catholic Church. While there, at about 10pm, he received a phone call from his brother Iddrisu Abdul-Rahman who lives in the deceased’s house to the effect that the condition of his son, aged 10, at the time, was deteriorating.
He left the family house to attend to his son in his BMW saloon car and on reaching the “T” junction of the main road, which is about 100 metres away from the family house, two young men on a “Boxer” motorbike with the number plate covered with a rag approached Suale and shot him several times through the glass window on the driver’s side.
He was rushed to the Pentecost Alpha Hospital at Madina where he was pronounced dead on arrival by the medical officer they met.
Touching on the murder of Joseph Boakye Danquah, the Member of Parliament for Abuakwa Abuakwa North Constituency in the Eastern Region, Mr Dame told Parliament that two accused- Daniel Asiedu, also known as Sexy Dondon and Vincent Bosso were standing trial before the Accra High Court (Criminal Court 5) presided over by Justice Lydia Osei Marfo.
On the murder of Ekow Hayford Quansah, the MP of Mfantseman, which occured on October 9, 2020, between Abeadze Dominase and Duadze on the Mankessim Assin Fosu highway, he said six persons namely Jibor Ali, Saadoh Umar, Sandoh Alhassan Abubakar, Nazairu Fudailu Nash and Mohammed (deceased) were standing trial.
Those who allegedly murdered Professor Emmanuel Benneh, a law lecturer at the University of Ghana, had gone through committal proceedings before the Kaneshie District Magistrate Court.
BY MALIK SULLEMANA