The quite town of Apedwa near Kyebi in the East Akim Municipality of the Eastern Region was thrown into a state of shock when a 25-year-old senior high school leaver, Eric Bekoe, kidnapped three little girls aged between two-and-half and four years into his room, chewed off their lips and defiled them with his fingers.

In an attempt to explain the actions of Eric Bekoe, residents resorted to guess work, attributing his carnivorous behaviour to occultism, the taking of hard drugs, witchcraft and ‘sakawa’.

Others however, suspected that Eric was mentally deranged.

The three kids who were all in critical condition, had been sent to the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra after doctors at the Kyebi Government Hospital realized the seriousness of their cases.

Incidentally, Eric Bekoe was popularly known in the town as ‘Mogya’ meaning ‘blood’, his nickname while he was a student at a senior high school in Osino.

A police source who corroborated Daily Guide’s Investigations said the kids (names withheld) all lived in the same neighbourhood of Tema, a suburb of Apedwa.

According to the source, early on Saturday, the three girls were sent to buy ‘Koko’, a local porridge, and while on their way, Eric Bekoe who lived about 150 meters from the victims' house, saw them, lured them into his room and locked the door.

It was around 8:00 am., and the many of the residents of the quiet neighbourhood who were farmers had left for their various farms.

The shrill cries of the children did not attract any help until a neighbour who saw the children in the company of Eric, heard their continuous cries from his room and quickly raised an alarm.

When the door to Eric Bekoe’s room was forced opened, they saw the little kids with mutilated lips and profusely bleeding from their mouths and their private parts. One of the girls had the front part of her tongue bitten off by Eric Bekoe with his mouth completely covered with blood.

He was arrested and sent to the Apedwa police station and later, the Suhum district police office.

The regional commander, DCOP Kwabena Gyamera-Yeboah, who confirmed the incident to the Daily Guide, said the police had reports that Eric Bekoe was mentally deranged but in his caution statement, he was consistent and coherent in his narration of events and admitted the offence.

According to the police commander, Eric Bekoe would be made to face the full rigours of the law. He asked parents to take good care of their children in such situations.

Meanwhile, the assembly member for the area where the unfortunate the incident occurred, Kwame Antwi, yesterday told the Daily Guide that he was surprised at the Behaviour of Eric.

He pleaded with public-spirited members to come to the aid of the children who were undergoing surgery at the Plastic and Burns Unit of the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital.

“ The Parents of these innocent children are all farmers and cannot help pay about GH?9,000, which we understand would be needed for their treatment at Korle-Bu and therefore want members of the public to help pay their hospital bills for us,” he said.

The Parents of the suspect expressed shock at the behaviour of their son and said they did not know what might have come over him.

According to them, their son was quiet and reserved person and they never suspected that he could engaged in what they described as ‘such a callous’ act.