An officer of the Ghana Immigration Service, Isaac Oppong, who allegedly shot and killed a motorbike rider at Dzobikope, near Kleve in the Ho municipality, has been charged with murder and arraigned before the Magistrate Court One last Friday.
The plea of the 30-year-old Assistant Immigration Control Officer Two was not taken.
The accused, stationed at the Honuta Immigration Post, was said to have shot the 25-year-old man in the ribs after the deceased allegedly ignored his signal to stop.
Sergeant Kwadwo Otibu-Gyan, who represented the republic, told the court, presided over by Albert Owusu Annor, that the incident took place on January 17 while the accused and a colleague were on patrol duty along the Honuta-Klave stretch.
Duty
The prosecution said the immigration officers were armed with pistols for that duty.
The court heard the deceased, Christian Dagbey, and another person turned up on the road on motorbikes from an unapproved route, carrying some gallons of vegetable oil.
The prosecution said it was then that the accused signalled them to stop, but they sped off.
Oppong and his colleague pursued them, using another motorbike, caught up with them at Dzobikope, and arrested the deceased, while the other rider escaped, the court heard.
Rider
The prosecution said at that juncture, the accused claimed the rider was struggling to dispossess him of his duty pistol which went off accidentally and the bullet hit the deceased in the left ribs.
The deceased was rushed to the Ho Teaching Hospital where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
The next day, Oppong was arrested, after which the pistol, with serial number H 78876Z, was retained as evidence.
The body of the deceased has been deposited at the morgue for preservation and autopsy.
The court remanded Oppong in prison custody until March 19.
Defence Sounsel Mohammed-Rufai Sugru Wuni, earlier, prayed the court to let the accused be sent to the detention facility of the GIS in Accra.
However, the prosecution objected, saying the matter was still under investigation and the police must have unrestricted access to the accused.
Source: Graphiconline