Man Dies In Police Cells

THE AGBOGBLOSHIE Police have been accused of beating a man to death while he was in their custody. The 46-year-old man, Augustine Owusu, a cashier of Fio Enterprise, located at Agbogbloshie, was picked up at dawn from his home by the Agbogbloshie police but was later found lying dead on the floor of the police cells with blood oozing out of his nostrils. Family members of the deceased, including his wife, who stormed the offices of DAILY GUIDE to narrate the incident, have called on the Inspector-General of Police, Paul Tawiah Quaye, to investigate the matter for the perpetrators to be brought to book. The elder brother of the deceased, Dominic Donkor, who led the team, almost broke down in tears as he narrated how Owusu was picked up from home around 4:30am on Thursday, January 5, 2012, by the Agbogbloshie police. This was based on a complaint made by his boss to the police that the deceased had embezzled some funds. According to Donkor, the deceased passed away a few hours after he was rushed to the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital on the same day. Though the matter has been reported to the Regional Police, nothing has been done about it. DCOP Rose Bio Atinga, Regional Police Commander, is said to have told the bereaved family that she had informed the IGP about the case and that the �killer� policemen would be arrested. The alleged culprits are still at post, according to the family. Mr. Donkor explained that his brother had been working with the said enterprise that deals in the wholesale of grocery for the past 20 years. While with the company, Owusu�s duty involved receiving monies from customers and keeping it in a safe until it was sent to the bank. He said on January 3, one Kwesi Asamoah, a colleague of his brother�s, called him on phone requesting another number he (Kwesi) could call the deceased on as he had tried his number severally but there was no answer. Kwesi, he said, explained to him that they needed the deceased to open the safe for the bankers to send the money to the bank but Donkor told Kwesi that he should not worry since Owusu would be in the office the next day for the money to be sent to the bank. He narrated that the following day, January 4, when his brother went to work, his boss, Auntie Fio, asked him to hand over the key to the safe to her and subsequently sacked him for not coming to work the day before. According to him, on January 5, at about 4:30am, his brother was arrested at Kasoa Amanfrom by the police led by one Shaibu following the complaint by his boss � Madam Adelaide Ahwiren aka Auntie Fio. She had complained that Owusu had allegedly refused to hand over a cash record book in his possession to her. According to his wife, Victoria Kani, her husband by whom she has two boys, aged 9 and 3, was then in boxer shorts but the police officer did not even allow him to put on a shirt as he was handcuffed and pushed into a waiting vehicle and sent to the police station. Victoria said she called on a family friend, one Patrick, to go to the police station and help get bail for her husband while she prepared some food for him. The friend allegedly found the deceased in a bad state when he got to the police station and requested that the policeman on duty allow him to send the victim to the hospital but the police officer reportedly refused saying the investigator handling the case was not present. Later, when the wife arrived at the station around 8am, she found her husband lying in a weak state on the floor with blood oozing from his nostrils and bruises all over his body. When she enquired why he was in that state, the policemen said he was a drunkard. The wife reportedly challenged them that her husband was very healthy when they picked him up from home and therefore demanded an explanation to his ill condition. The wife said the officers did not show any concern about the state of her husband so with the help of the friend, they pushed the deceased into a taxi and rushed him to the Usher Clinic but he was referred to Korle-Bu Polyclinic due to his critical condition. At Korle-Bu, the nurses, after observing his condition, said he should be sent to the accident ward. He however died a few hours after doctors tried to save his life. Donkor said they were advised by the nurses to report the matter to the police because his brother�s death was as a result of multiples injuries. The family is however yet to receive the autopsy report. Donkor further disclosed that he went to Auntie Fio�s house to enquire why she got her brother arrested but the woman allegedly said she only reported him to the police to help retrieve a cash record book in his possession. �When I informed her that my brother has been beaten to death, she said no, that couldn�t be possible because that was not her request.� He later reported the matter to the Regional police where their statements were taken and an investigator � Inspector Odame, was assigned to the case. The bereaved family is calling for justice to prevail. When DAILY GUIDE contacted Auntie Fio for her side of the story, she said she would not comment because the matter was still in the hands of the police while they were still awaiting the autopsy report.