General News of Sunday, 10 July 2016

Source: GNA

Coconut seller mistaken for robber; beaten in Tema

The victim sustained injuries including a fractured head and a twisted ankle The victim sustained injuries including a fractured head and a twisted ankle

An alleged robber was found in a pool of blood at the Tema site 7 roundabout on Saturday morning.

The victim who gave his name as Kweku Abednego was allegedly beaten by a mob around the Light Industrial Area, Community One, Tema. and left to die.

The incident which occurred on Saturday dawn saw the victim sustaining injuries including a visible fractured head and a twisted ankle as he laid helpless in dirt and blood stained clothes.

Giving his side of the story, Kweku, who claims to be an indigene of Gomoa Jarman, in the Central Region, said he is a coconut salesman who operates within the Tema metropolis.

According to him, he woke up at 2 am to get to the wholesale joint to get some coconuts. He said on his way, he needed to adjust something on his hand-driven truck, and as such reached out for a piece of iron rod from a pile of rods within the said area.

In the process, he was taken to for a thief and the alarm was raised which attracted residents to the scene. According to him, he was beaten up and dumped by the road side around Site 7 roundabout, Community One, Tema. Chief Inspector Bonnie of the Community One Police Station, who was at the scene with his men, narrated a similar story in an interview with the GNA.

He, however, said that it was too early to determine what really happened. The victim was taken to the Community One Police Station. One of the on-lookers who spoke to the GNA under anonymity observed that even though the victim could indeed be a thief as is alleged, he believed that the Ghanaian society should move away from dispensing justice on the streets.