Residents of Mayera, a farming community in the Jaman North District in the Brong Ahafo Region, woke up to a sad spectacle last Saturday when a 35-year-old hunter, Martin Sekyere, alias Yaw Sekyere, went berserk and killed four people before ending his life.
The deceased have been identified by the police as Nana Sekyere 72, Afia Afofie, 60, Yaw Appiah, 65, Kwabena Asun, 63, while a fifth victim, Margaret Kwayie, who was in critical condition, was rushed to the Regional Hospital in Sunyani and later transferred to the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) in Kumasi.
Like a scene in a horror movie, Sekyere began his killing spree between 6.00 a.m. and 6.30 a.m. by shooting his own father, Nana Sekyere, just as he was stepping out of a bathroom to prepare to attend a funeral. He then went to a nearby house to shoot and kill Afofie.
Stepping out of that house, Sekyere saw Asun, and shot him, resulting in his intestines gushing out. He died at the Sampa Government Hospital.
Sekyere’s next victim was Kwayie, who is currently battling with her life at KATH, before ending the life of Appiah, another elderly man.
I will kill The Brong Ahafo Regional Police Public Relations Officer, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Christopher Tawiah, who briefed the Daily Graphic about the incident, said residents told the police that Sekyere issued threats last Friday that he was going to kill.
“I will kill, I will kill” was what some residents said Sekyere repeatedly threatened last Friday, but residents did not take the threats seriously.
Epilespy Mr Tawiah explained that Sekyere had been suffering from epilespy which had been occurring from time to time but he had been going on with his hunting expeditions without any incident.
He said residents told the police that the perpetrator did not have a grudge against his father and wondered why he decided to cause such mayhem
Sekyere’s action was said to have thrown the town into a state of confusion and mourning.
The residents were said to have run helter-skelter for their lives and only returned to their homes after Sekyere had ended his life.
Police Advice The Brong Ahafo Regional Police PRO, therefore, advised the public to take such threats seriously and report them to the police to prevent the recurrence of such an incident.
He said the single-barrelled gun which Sekyere used for the crime was in the possession of the police, while the bodies of the deceased had been deposited at the Sampa Government Hospital pending autopsy.
<<Print>>