There was a near scuffle between
members of the National Democratic Congress legal team and officials
of the Criminal Investigations Department on Monday.
The scuffle ensued when the police
wanted to detain Oheneba Boamah Bennie for allegedly threatening the life of
President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.
The NDC team made up of Victor
Kojogah Adawuda, Francis Xavier Sosu, and Dr Basit Bamba according to the Daily
Graphic had series of confrontations with the police officers over their
invitation and the decision to detain the radio presenter for further
investigations.
It was during one of such
confrontations that Lawyer Adawuda issued a threat to the police officers
saying “you have families, you have wives, you have children, we know where
they are so do it well.”
The lawyers insisted on knowing
where the police intended on keeping their client and requested for bail which
was denied by the police.
At this point, lawyer Adawuda
was said to be throwing tantrums at the car park of the CID headquarters and
even announced that he was ready to die at the scene.
In a cynical act, Lawyer Sosu
who is an MP-elect for Madina Constituency said the police were going to ‘kill’
the suspect if they send him away.
Lawyer Sosu directed the suspect not to sit in the car that
was supposed to transfer him for detention if the police were not going to
disclose where exactly they were taking him.
Lawyer Adawuda also issued more
instructions saying, “We shall all die here. Don’t go anywhere!”
Lawyer Sosu at a point is said
to have attempted to join his client in the police car but was stopped by the
police.
The team then resorted to an
attempt to follow the police car taking the suspect away but were left stranded
for a while as the police locked the main entrance to the headquarters.
The suspect before being taken
away had the explicit instructions of his lawyers not to utter any word.
However, when he was brought out from the conference room to the vehicle to be
transported for detention, he started raining curses on those he said recorded
the video that has landed him in trouble with the police.
Lawyer Adewuda later stated that
“they showed us a video and audio. Our client confirmed he was the one. Now
they are saying he would not be granted bail, therefore they are sending him to
the Central Police Station. The police initially said they will not tell us
where they were sending him to.”
Oheneba Boamah Bennie, who is a
presenter with a pro-NDC radio station based in Accra, Power FM, was invited by
the CID because according to them he posted a video on December 10 at about
12:54 pm, in which he was heard insulting and issuing threats on the life of
President Akufo-Addo.
He has been cautioned on the
offences of offensive conduct conducive to the breaches of peace and
publication of false news contrary to Section 207 and 208 (1) respectively of
the Criminal and Other Offences Act, Act 29/60.
At the time he reported to the
CID head office and throughout his interrogation, some NDC supporters had
massed up in front of the CID Headquarters bus stop to show solidarity to the
suspect.
Lawyer Adawuda upon the
indication by the police to transfer the suspect told the supporters to march
to the Accra Central Police Station which they did on foot as directed.
The team of lawyers then sat in
their luxurious cars and left the scene.
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