In the quest to embark on his entrepreneurial journey, seeking to venture into various forms of agriculture-related trading, Dr Daniel McKorley has recounted startling details about his ordeal on the Ghana-Cote d'Ivoire border which almost cost his life.

According to him, this ordeal took place in Jaway Wharf, which is a village near Half Assini in the Western region where he was seeking to engage with some farmers in coffee and maize trading at the time.

In his book, ‘The Path of An Eagle; Despair, Hope & Glory,’ Dr Daniel McKorley, the Chief Executive Officer of the McDan Group, narrated how a little girl saved him from being murdered by killers posing as farmers.

“Jaway Wharf is a village near Half Assini in the Western region, on the Ghana-Cote d'Ivoire border. To get to that village I had to cross a lake in a canoe. I drove all the way to the lake, and upon arrival two men approached me and confirmed many farmers had coffee to sell across the lake, and that they would like to assist me get whatever quantity I needed if I wanted them to. I took their word for it, thinking they were local middlemen offering to help. In those days, I used to hide my money under the carpet of my car, in a particular compartment built for that purpose,” he wrote.

“Leaving the car at the other side of the lake, I followed the two men, who took me in a canoe across the lake into a small house in a village. Although I had some money on me, the bulk of it was hidden in that secret compartment in the car. As soon as we got there, the men offered me a seat, asked me to wait and disappeared. I waited for several minutes on tenterhooks. I was expecting the two men to show up at any moment and ask me to follow them to where some huge heaps of coffee were waiting.”

McDan recounted that while waiting for the supposed farmers, a little girl, about ten years of age, appeared from nowhere and whispered a warning for him to find his way and run from the spot as the men intended to murder him for reasons only known to them.

“Panicking jumped on my feet. I did not immediately know what to do. I was a stranger to the place and did not know my bearings. What was more, my car was all the way at the other side of the lake, and I did not know how to ride in the canoe even if I decided to leave the place before the women returned.

Was that how it was all going to end, I wondered, after all the struggles I had been through in life? At this juncture, I had nothing to fall on apart from self-defence. If anybody attempted to kill me, they certainly would have to die with me, I thought.” McDan expressed.

He continued, “After I had waited for a while, the two men came back, carrying some nice coffee samples in some small sacks. I could not tell at once if what the little girl told me was true. I waited to see what the two men were up to. They asked to see money so they could go and bring the sacks. The look on their faces as they mentioned money told me they could be crooks as the girl had alerted me.”

"I'm sorry you would have to follow me beyond the lake where left my car," McDan recounted as he told them the money was placed in his car.

The men pulled faces, suggesting they were unhappy with my answer, but they had no other option but to take me back to my car. One of them asked me why I had to leave my money in the car, knowing I was coming to purchase something. I sighed and remained silent, trying to kill off any suspicions they might entertain by looking as unperturbed as possible. After a period of furtive eye communication, they agreed to follow me to the car to bring the money. I could have asked them to wait while Iran to get it, but I had already told them I did not know how to ride the canoe.”

“When we got to the car, to my surprise, a gang of rascals was already waiting around, looking ever ready to begin trouble. I realised immediately that they were a criminal group formed with the purpose of attacking and duping unsuspecting customers who ventured into those areas. I suspected the two men might have gone to inform them about my presence when they left to bring the coffee samples.

They drew close to me as I approached the car and made for the door. Their jumpy mood told me to be careful, for they could, indeed, be up to something atrocious. The gang seemed interested in where I was going to pull the money out of the car. I was extremely tense, but I did not want to give myself away by showing signs of anxiety. When I realised their intention, I also got prepared for what was to follow,” he further narrated.

Faced with the need to save his life, McDan said a crowbar he had always kept at the back seat of his car ultimately became the weapon his mind fell upon to salvage the situation which seemed like a public brawl awaiting to happen.

“In a moment I bent down in the car, pretending to withdraw the money, but I was actually making for the crowbar: One of the men got so close, as if to attack me while the other one moved to the other side of the car, shouting, "The money! The money!" I fetched the crowbar and before he realised what I was doing, I had plunged the heavy object at the left side of his neck. The man fell heavily beside the car as I took to my heels.

If you get any closer, I'll shoot," I threatened as I ran, frisking my body as though I was looking for a hidden weapon. When they heard the word shoot, the gang slowed their advance towards me. One of the men who had led me to the village came crossing my path as I ran. I guessed he was sure I did not have a gun and was going to dare me to shoot. That could have exposed me badly, and the gang might have come flocking around in their attempt to overpower me. But the man would not succeed easily. As he tried to obstruct my movement, I held his head and swung him around. We both landed on the ground in the struggle. But I was the faster of the two of us. In a second, I sprang to my feet and continued running” he wrote.

Dr McKorley said the situation was then reported to a nearby police but nothing came out of his compliant, leaving him frustrated and shortly returned to Accra after the ordeal.

MA/KPE