Serial Killers Hit Ho

*Three bodies found, three people arrested
*Voodoo, juju, black magic suspected

LUME IN THE Ho District of the Volta Region is in the grip of hysteria sparked by serial killers, following the discovery of three murdered people last Thursday in a manner reminiscent of the recent murders at Suhum in the Eastern Region, plunging the town into perpetual fear.

The discovery of the murdered persons came as a result of a High Court order, directing the Keta Police to search and exhume the body of one Wilson Kodjo Tenu, a teacher, allegedly murdered by three suspects, Xove Apalloo, Mauvi Alixey and Koblaga Question, a chief priest.

After the news of what could aptly be called serial killings at Lume broke out Thursday, reports gathered by this paper indicate that the whole town went into a frenzy, demanding the blood of the suspects who led the police on the exhumation exercise and to scenes of their heinous crimes.

A huge crowd gathered at the site where the team of policemen together with personnel from the Keta District Health Service and the Ho District Environmental Office dug out the bodies from their crypts after news spread that the killers involved in the killing of the missing teacher had been arrested.

Narrating the facts of the matter to this reporter, the Assemblyman of the area, Mr Nelson Denu, intimated that Mr Nelson Kojo Tenu went missing from the town on September 9, 2006, under very strange circumstances when he received a call on his cell phone to meet some people at a nearby location.

According to him, the elders of the town reported the case of the missing teacher to the Anloga Police on October 6, 2006, when nothing was heard of the missing Kojo Tenu.

As fate would have it, on the 27th day of the same October, one of the missing teacher's relatives called the cell phone number of the deceased only for Xove Apalloo to answer, claiming to be speaking from a nearby town, We Abanyakope.

With the help of the Regent of Lume, Mr Fiangor, and some elders of the town, the Assembly man said they managed to arraign Mr Xove to Lume where he confessed before the elders that he bought the cell phone from Koblaga Question.

Accounts corroborated by the Regent, Mr Fiangor, other informants and the Assembly man indicated that due to the inaction of the Anloga Police, the townfolks referred the matter to the Ho Divisional Police Command, who moved to quickly arrest Mauvi Alixey, Koblaga Question and Xove Apalloo for investigation.

According to the Assembly man, they believe the suspects kill people for juju and other magical practices and that there is the possibility that they (suspects) might have more hidden killings that need to be unravelled.

Again, he suggested that the townsfolk are contending that if the order for the search of one body could lead to three people in just a day, then the Court should give the police more powers to search for more bodies, especially in the homes of the suspects, since the police have allegedly claimed that they couldn't do so because the Court has not ordered them to.

Meanwhile, teachers in the district have given a unilateral ultimatum to boycott the classroom if the body of their missing colleague - which sources say was not among those found so far - is not found immediately.

Mr Nelson Denu told this paper that though nothing concrete has been found in terms of the identities of the victims, the final word would be out only after laboratory tests are conducted on them, saying that the bodies have since been transported to Accra for examination.

"A thorough search must be undertaken to find out if some bodies have been buried inside their houses as well", he added, believing that that is the only move to placate the angry townsfolk.