Twelve out of the fourteen persons accused of the murder of Major Maxwell Adam Mahama of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), have been sentenced to life imprisonment by the Accra High Court, on Monday.
They include the assembly member of Denkyira-Obuasi electoral area, William Baah, in Cape Coast, Central Region.
This was after a seven-member jury returned a unanimous verdict of guilty on the convicts.
The jury also returned a unanimous verdict of not guilty on two others – Bismarck Donkor and Bismark Abanga, who were charged for conspiracy to commit crime, based on which Justice Mariama Owusu, a Supreme Court Judge, sitting with additional responsibility as a High Court Judge, acquitted and discharged the two.
Those convicted, Bernard Asamoah, alias Daddy, Kofi Nyamea.k.a abortion, AkwasiBoah, Kwame Tuffour, Joseph Appiah Kubi, Michael Anim, John Bosie, Akwasi Asante, Charles Kwaning, Emmanuel Baidoo, and Kwadwo Anima.
This was after the seven-member jury comprising of a lady and six gentlemen returned a unanimous guilty verdict against William Baah for abetment.
Mr Godfred Yeboah Dame, the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, led the team of prosecutors, including Deputy Attorney General, Alfred Tuah-Yeboah, and Chief State Attorney, Mrs Evelyn Keelson.
Both parents of the former soldier and other family members were in court.
All the convicts pleaded not guilty to murder, abetment to murder and conspiracy to commit murder.
The facts, as presented by the prosecution, were that Major Mahama was the Commander of a military detachment stationed at Diaso, in the Upper Denkyira West District of the Central Region, to check illegal mining.
However, at 8 am, on May 29, 2017, Major Mahama, wearing civilian clothes, but with his sidearm, left his detachment base for a 20-kilometre jogging.
The prosecution said at 9:25 am, on the fateful day, the military officer got to the outskirts of Denkyira Obuasi where a number of women were selling foodstuffs by the roadside.
He stopped to interact with the women and even bought some snails, which he left in their
custody to be collected on his return from jogging.
The court heard that while Major Mahama, officer of the GAF, was taking out money from his pocket to pay for the snails, the woman from whom he had bought the snails and a few others saw his sidearm tucked to his waist.
Soon after he left, one of the women telephoned the assembly member for Denkyira Obuasi to report what they had seen, the prosecution said.
“Without verifying the information, the assembly member mobilised accused and others, some now at large, to attack the military officer,” the court heard.
The prosecution said that the mob met Major Mahama near the Denkyira Obuasi cemetery and without giving him the opportunity to explain and identify himself, they “attacked him with implements such as clubs, cement blocks and machetes, killed him and burnt a portion of his body.”
BY MALIK SULLEMANA