DON'T CHARGE SUSPECT AG ORDERS

Accra, Jan 29, The Attorney General's Department has advised that Nii Kwetia Daniel Hammond, a trainee accountant, who was charged with the murder of Madam Elizabeth Ofosu, a housewife at Odorkor on May 10, last year,should not be charged with any offence. This was disclosed by the prosecutor, Police Inspector Alex Yartey Tawiah when the case was called at a circuit court in Accra today. Inspector Tawiah told the court that he had been instructed by his superiors to discontinue with the case following a letter of advice from the Department that Hammond should not be charged with the offence. He furnished the court with a copy of the letter, dated October 30, last year.

Col V.C. Doegah (rtd), presiding, therefore "acquitted and discharged" the accused. The letter said, among others, that the post mortem report on Madam Ofosu stated that she was "obese and that there were no marks of violence on her body. "The specialist pathologist stated that in his opinion, death was due to right intracerebral haemorrhage with sub arachnoid extension due to hypertension and hypertensive nephropathy haemorrhagic gastritis," the letter added.

The Department said, this, in its opinion, ruled out any possibility of physical violence from an external source such as the relations of the accused described and in the circumstance, advised that the accused should not be charged with any offence whatsoever. The case for the prosecution is that, sometime in May, last year, Madam Ofosu and her relatives accused Hammond of stealing a video deck belonging to the deceased. The prosecution said a quarell ensued between the deceased and Hammond kicked her in the abdomen and pushed her down. She became unconscious and was taken to hospital where she died on May 10, last year, the prosecution said.