A court in Accra has ordered the police to produce two murder suspects to account for the alleged murder of Madam Alice Debrah, a trader.
Absent from the tribunal were Azumah Agbeko, 32, a fetish priest, and Bless Fia-Kwofie Kwablatsey, 59, alias Efo, a driver, who were originally charged with the alleged kidnapping of the trader.
However, the prosecution informed the court, which was presided over by Mr. Oheneba Kuffour, that it wished to withdraw the case after learning that the accused had murdered the 47-year-old woman after kidnapping her.
According to the report, the authorities discovered where Agbeko and Kwablatsey buried the late Madam Debrah.
Since then, the cadaver has been exhumed.
In place of the initial conspiracy and kidnapping charges, Agbeko and Kwablatsey are likely to be charged with conspiracy and homicide.
At the previous adjourned date, the prosecutor asked the court to remand the defendants because the evidence pointed to a murder charge, and the court remanded them accordingly.
On the following adjourned date, the prosecutor verified to the court that Madam Debrah had been murdered, but did not produce the defendants.
Instead, the prosecutor showed the court photographs of the exhumation of Madam Debrah's body.
Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Emmanuel Nyamekye previously informed the Court that the complainant in the case, Mr Emmanuel Adamtey, a sales assistant at Melcom, resided with Madam Debrah in Kuwait, a suburb of Kasoa in the Central Region.
He told the court that Agbeko lived in Lente Whuti, close to Aflao in the Volta Region, while Kwablatsey resided in Kuwait, Kasoa and was the deceased's neighbor.
DSP Nyamekye stated that on March 25, 2023, Madam Debrah informed a witness in this case, Hannah Ohene, that she would travel to the Volta Region at dawn on March 26, 2023.
Mrs. Debrah departed her residence on March 26, 2023, and never returned.
Investigations revealed that Madam Debrah, who sold used clothing, had discussed ways to enhance her business with Kwablatsey.
According to the prosecution, Kwablatsey introduced the deceased to Agbeko so she could assist her with spiritual charms to attract more customers based on their conversation.
The court heard that on March 17, 2023, Madam Debrah transferred GHC1,500.00 to Agbeko's mobile money account. Roughly one week later, Agbeko contacted the deceased in the evening and arranged for them to meet.
DSP Nyamekye reported that Madam Debrah arrived in Tokor, Volta Region, on March 26, 2023, at approximately 07:36 hours, where she met Agbeko, and has not been seen or heard from since.
Police Intelligence led to the apprehension of Agbeko, who named Kwablatsey as his accomplice but denied ever having met the victim.
According to him, Kwablatsey confessed that he accompanied the decedent to meet Agbeko in March, after which she sent money to the fetish priest.
Agbeko denied ever physically seeing the deceased.
However, the court heard that the deceased's call records revealed communications between her and the fetish priest, as well as the GHC1,500.00 mobile money transaction she sent to him.
DSP Nyamekye stated that the suspects had been provisionally charged with the crimes.