Eight persons arrested in connection with the murder of Mfantseman Member of Parliament (MP), Ekow Quansah Hayford, have pleaded not guilty to robbery charges against them.
Alhassan Abubakar, Naziru Fudailu Nash, popularly called SP, Alhassan Mahama Yahaya, Amadu Yakubu, Haruna Osumanu Adam Alhassan, Fuseini Osman and Fred Tetteh, have been charged with conspiracy to commit crime namely robbery and robbery.
They pleaded not guilty as their charges were read to them at an Accra Circuit court.
Giving brief facts of the case to the court, ASP Fuseini Yakubu said last month, the police received information that armed robbers, numbering about six had mounted barriers on the Abeadze -Dominase Mankesim road.
According to him, upon the arrival of the police at the scene, they found several vehicles parked with a number of victims wounded.
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He said, while Patrick Asante, a KIA Truck driver, and Uncle Isaah, the late MP’s driver were found to be seriously injured, the MP was dead.
Subsequently, the police cleared the road to traffic and conveyed the victims to Winneba and Cape Coast Hospitals for medical attention.
ASP Yakubu said they were told by witnesses that the MP arrived with his campaign team onboard a Mitsubishi pickup branded in New Patriotic Party colours.
The robbers then started to fire gunshots into the vehicle, bursting the tires and resulting in the car running into a ditch.
The robbers quickly surrounded them and demanded for all their valuables while pointing a gun at Stephen Allan who they assumed was the MP.
Continuing with his narration, the ASP told the court that, it was the MP who owned up and identified himself.
“So they pounced on him and collected his Samsung Galaxy A50 mobile phone and demanded money,” he added.
But Mr Quansah Hayford pleaded with them to follow him home for money since he did not have any on him.
He is alleged to have explained that, he had used up all his money during the campaign tour; a revelation that infuriated the robbers and caused them to shot him.
ASP Yakubu said in the course of their investigations, the police traced the MP’s Samsung Galaxy A50 mobile phone to Kumasi Aboabo where the first arrest was made.
The suspect, Nasiru Fudailu, who was in possession of the phone, told the police that he bought the device at a cost of GH¢750.00 from one Alhassan Abubakar.
Mr Fudailu, then led the police to Kumasi Akwatialine, where suspect Abubakar was also picked up.
During his interrogation, suspect Abubakar alleged that he also bought the phone from Mohammed (no last name stated) for GH¢650.00
However, efforts to trace the said Mohammed has proven futile. He is believed to have fled and is currently wanted by the police.
Chief Inspector Frimpong told the court that further investigation led to the arrest of more suspects, bringing the total number to eight.
One other suspect, identified only as ‘Mohammed’ and others, are said to be at large. A request by lawyers for the accused persons for bail was rejected as they were remanded to re-appear on November 16.
