The family of a deceased police officer stationed at Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region says it suspects the police administration has a hand in the circumstances that led to his death MyNewsGh.com reports.
Forty-two (42) year-old Lance Corporal James Yaw Appiah, alias “Antoa Cupers” was found dead in his tent at a police duty point near the Bawku Government Hospital on the last day of a monthly rotational police operation that had sent him to the town.
The family says the records on the mobile phone of the deceased suggested he had last had a hearty chatted with his cousin, gospel musician Lady Prempeh at 2:30 AM on the dawn of July 4 2019, before he was later discovered dead few hours later.
Head of the family, Nana Dr Kusi Appiah Osraman, who spoke in an interview with Kumasi-based Angel FM monitored by MyNewsGh.com said, “Police in the Upper East Region is being economical with the truth in the circumstances that led to the death of his nephew and suspects that they have a hand in the matter”.
“They are deliberately keeping the body at Bawku so that it would get rotten in order to conceal the evidence that could be adduced from the postmortem”, he said, accusing the Upper East Regional Police Commander, DCOP Ampofo Duku of conspiring to get his nephew killed, because he told me to “do whatever I want or please myself” when I threatened to make the matter public.
In demanding justice, he threatened to fight the matter to the latter and called on the Inspector-General of Police, Mr David Asante Apeatu to intervene since his men at the regional level has failed him and continue to complicate the matter with flimsy excuses.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with MyNewsGh.com, the family head revealed that the policeman, who is survived by two kids from his previous relationship, was billed to get wedded only two weeks before his demise.
The family says it is yet to be given access to the body through the one-week funeral observation of the policeman has since been observed.
A video recording in possession of MyNewsGh.com shows the deceased on a stretcher in his police jumper at the mortuary; a careful look at his body reveals bloody bruises to the right side of his face down to the shoulder, suggesting that he might have struggled with his assailant.
The family has therefore vowed to pursue the matter to the latter and would not hesitate to press legal charges against the Ghana police service if it continues to “cover up” the matter.