General News of Thursday, 12 April 2018

Source: starrfmonline.com

Major Mahama ‘killers’ reject Jury

The 14 suspects are in police custody for the death of the late Major Mahama The 14 suspects are in police custody for the death of the late Major Mahama

The suspected killers of Major Maxwell Mahama have rejected members selected to join the jury who will decide their fate in the murder trial.

Fourteen potential members were picked by the Court out of which seven will be selected to form the jury but the suspected killers rejected eight of the 14.

The suspected killers through their lawyers kept rejecting the last person picked by the court to complete the jury to enable their trial to commence.

Out of the six members accepted by the suspected killers of the late soldier, four are males and two are females.

Following several rejections by the suspected killers, the presiding judge, Justice Mariama Owusu adjourned the case to Monday, 16th April, 2018 and has ordered the judicial service to provide five people on Monday for one to be selected to complete the jury.

The 14 suspects are standing trial at an Accra High Court for the death of the military man in May 2017.

State prosecutors say they have gathered 53 pieces of incriminating evidence, including video, pictures against the 14 persons.

The accused persons are William Baah, the Assemblyman of Denkyira Obuasi, Bernard Asamoah alias Daddy, Kofi Nyarko aka Abortion, Akwasi Baah, Kwame Tuffour, Joseph Appiah Kubi, Micheal Anim and Bismarck Donkor.

Others are John Bosie, Akwasi Baah, Charles Kwaning, Emmanuel Badu, Bismarck Abanga and Kwadwo Anima.

Background

Major Maxwell Mahama of the 5 Battalion of Infantry was lynched while he was on his early morning jogging Monday, May 29, 2017.

The mob later claimed they mistook him for an armed robber because he carried a weapon. The residents of Denkyira-Obuasi in the Central region stoned and burnt him.

The late soldiers were posthumously promoted to the rank of Major on June 5, by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

Parliament in November 2017, approved a bill that will make the spouse and children of Major Maxwell Mahama the state’s responsibility. The bill was in fulfilment of the President’s promise to the family of Major Mahama.

53 people were arrested following the incident but that number was reduced to 14 after several weeks of investigations into the incident.