Fetish priest exposes ritual murderers

Old Ningo (Greater Accra) --An attempt to kill a 12-year old Primary 5 pupil, Prince Kwabena Darko, of Roman Catholic Primary School at Akrodea, near Goaso in the Brong Ahafo Region for ritual purpose was foiled by a fetish priest at Banuhene-Korpe, near Old Ningo.

Information received had it that the culprits, Isaac Owusu Mensah, 21, from Akrodea and uncle of victim; Issah Seidu, 24, farmer from Sefwi, and Kwabena Kondau, 26, a teacher of Faith International School at Santase-Kumasi have been arrested by the police at Prampram.

Investigations by the Chronicle revealed that last Saturday, Owusu Mensah and Issah Seidu went to Akrodea and secretly took away little Prince Kwabena Darko from the house at the time the mother was on the farm. Teacher Konadu joined them at Kumasi and boarded a vehicle to Accra. Kidnapped Prince Darko was transported to Tsopoli on the main Tema-Aflao road, near Old Ningo at about 10.30 pm.

Owusu Mensah and Issah Seidu went to a herbalist at the village of Banuhene-Korpe and told him that they brought the boy to be killed for ritual purpose. If agreed, Prince was going to be killed on Sunday night. He declined the job, so they offered the boy for sale.

The herbalist, George Palas, feigned interest and the boy was sent to him on Sunday morning at which time, a price tag of ?200 million was placed on him, but later ?150 million was arrived at. The herbalist produced a polythene bag containing some money he alleged was ?50 million and so he left to bring more money to add up. George Palas after frantic efforts from about 11.00 am to get in touch with the Prampram Police District Commander, ASP Prosper Amoah-Ayisi, finally reached him at 3.00 pm. His difficulty was due to the telephone lines, which went bad after torrential rains overnight.

Mr Ayisi reportedly mobilised men, armed to the teeth, joined a taxi, followed by a police Land-rover at a distance and met the suspects in the house of the fetish priest, together with the ?sacrificial-lamb-to-be? sitting.

After their arrest, which was without resistance, a knife was found in the pocket of Owusu Mensah, apparently for ?action? on his nephew. When questioned, the suspects, who admitted the attempt, said that if they had succeeded in killing Prince in the night of Sunday, they were going to remove his heart and other vital organs for the rituals.

As to what he was going to tell the sister, named only as Dufie, Owusu Mensah said that they were going to cause an announcement of a missing boy to be made as a cover-up.

The Prampram District Commander was not available for his comment when Chronicle visited the place, but police sources in the district said that the suspects were going to be transferred to the Tema Regional Police office. The fetish priest, who was visited more than twice by Issah and Konadu, is reported as saying that he detests pouring blood, hence he exposed the criminals.