Mr Emmanuel Ajarfor Abugri, the Deputy Editor of online news portal ModernGhana, who was arrested together with Mr Emmanuel Yeboah Britwum, a reporter, has said that he was tortured and beaten by National Security operatives while in detention following a raid of their office and their subsequent arrest.
Mr Abugri, who was released on Saturday, 29 June 2019, said he was not spared by his captors who, he claimed took turns to hit and taser him.
Even though the National Security said they arrested the two in relation to cybercrime and hacking allegations, Mr Abugri said the questions posed to him while in detention had no links to those claims.
Mr Abugri noted that he was rather questioned on a critical article his outfit published about the National Security Minister, Mr Albert Kan-Dapaah, and the governing New Patriotic Party’s MP for Effutu Constituency, Alexander Afenyo-Markin in relation to happenings at the University of Education, Winneba (UEW).
Gun-wielding officials stormed the office of ModernGhana last week and whisked the two journalists away. Their heads were covered with a black bag on Thursday.
Narrating the incident, Mr Abugri said he was slapped, punched and assaulted endlessly for hours till the point where he struggled to breathe.
“They questioned me for about an hour and then the beating started because they said I have to confess. I was tortured; every question came with a slap. When they ask anything and before I could say anything then the slaps,” he told Accra-based Joy FM on Monday, I July 2019.
He said the operatives got infuriated and intensified the assault on him any time the national security officials were unconvinced about his responses to their questions.
“When I give an answer and they are not satisfied then they give me a slap. They used the electrical shocker to shock my body”, he narrated, adding: “From there, they made me go through the military style where I have to lean against the wall with legs up and head down as if I'm doing a press up then they gave me a huge slap at my back then I fell and one guy used his elbow on my backbone”.
He continued: “I could not breathe for a while, so, I had to open my mouth and gasp in the air so I could survive and I cried like a newborn baby telling them I was innocent.”
Mr Abugri said one of the articles in question was received through a third party and published because it satisfied the editorial policy of ModernGhana.
He said the other story was written out of a press release.
Source: classfmonline.com
Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. |
This guy is a liar, a nation wrecker and ndc sent ! I'm surprised some Northerners are behaving unbelievable in the south, trying to get fame by acting strangely is uncalled for. Anas, Mannaseh Azure, Suhuyini, Muntaka, Raz Mubarak, A.B.A Fuseini, Inusah Fuseini etc and now Abugri why are you doing this to yourselves? We are waiting for the Court action tomorrow about the Modern Ghana saga !
Confess what because u agreed that u did publication which they question u about. I don't get it. However, I don't support National Security torturing people.
In 2018 mid year budgets, Accra Inner City Roads phase one Adenta-Dodowa road 22 Km to be constructed. this is at page 41 and 42 of 2018 mid year budget statement. Up Until now no sign of the dualisation. Oh financial minister hope you will not repeat this same road in 2019 mid year budget and if gov is not ready why lie to us.
@Nana and @YAw please do not put dust in our eyes. You can deny it as much but this guy is a journalist, not a shady character who has come out to say these things. He is a well known person and there was no need of pouncing on him with kamakazi force in the first place. The national security folks are well resourced to have arrested him with no brute force. Cyber crime can be traced easily with gadgets which are low cost on the market. No one can connect to the internet without identification anywhere in the world. If the authorities do not want to go after you, its is a different situation. You will definitely have an IP address which will be traceable with only a few clicks. There are magistrates on stand by even at midnight to sign a warrant to monitor anyone's activity be it online or off line. What is it at all that will influence national security to go in with all that force? The officers of the national security and their behaviour lends credence to what Abugri is saying. He may be exaggerating issues but i believe that there was a low level torture exerted just to show him where power lies because he has written stories which the national security outfit does not like and for that matter the government despises.
Torturing for Hacking? Torturing for what? They already had what they needed that is why you were arrested. This is a purely technical issue so why will anyone torture you?
Torturing, am afraid that can't be folks, in the first place let's ask ourselves the purposes of His arrest that will warrant electric shocking and torturing to unravel what? The IT guys knows that if U hacked into somebody's email or website to steal information or whatever and the Security have enough technology to trace same to u it's just a matter of making their evidence available to confirmed the claims and no through torturing that u want us to understand .
Torture under the so-called champion of human right? The first time under the 4th republic that journalists and media men are being persecuted and tortured for doing their work. Ghana is now worst than South Sudan in media freedoms
this president is mafia.
How can he act on it when he is the mastermind behind this impunity? Whose creation is the national security?
Nana Addo must act on this none sense. Torture in modern Ghana??