PHOTO: The Man Who Shot His Son Dead Over Coconut

A 62-year-old coconut farmer at Samenye in the Jomoro District of the Western Region who felt he was being deprived of his livelihood by the activities of his 21-year-old son has done the unthinkable by gunning down the young man in cold blood. The suspect, Joseph Oppong Andoh, told the police when he was arrested that he killed his son, Kwasi Abrochi Egya, for continuously gathering coconuts from his (Andoh�s) farm for sale without his consent. He was said to have shot the son in the chest at close range. The suspect confessed to the police that at his age his only source of income was the coconut farm, but his son, who was full of energy, always visited the farm before him and gathered the coconuts for sale. According to the Half Assini Police, the suspect claimed that he had warned his son on several occasions to discontinue that behaviour, since the young man was depriving him of his livelihood. They said last Saturday the suspect took his single-barrelled shotgun with him to the farm and realised that the dried coconuts that had fallen from the trees had all been collected, leaving him with nothing to depend on. The police said before the suspect could finish with his lamentations, he saw his son return to the farm and out of fury he shot at the young man. The body of the deceased has been deposited at the Government Hospital at Half-Assini, while the suspect is currently in police custody. When contacted, the Jomoro District Police Commander, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Mr John F. Dzineku, said the suspect had confessed to the crime. According to him, Andoh claimed his son had pushed him to the wall for far too long and he was left with no option at the time but to take the step he took. Family members told the police that the suspect had been quarreling with his son over the coconut farm for a long time and had threatened to kill him on many occasions. A search in the suspect�s house revealed two single-barrelled guns with three live cartridges.