Missing man's family suspect foul play, petition PIPS

The family of Mr Benjamin Kwabena Atobrah, who has been missing since Friday, 3 May 2019, have petitioned the Director-General of the Police Intelligence and Professional Standards Bureau (PIPS) over the disappearance of the solar technician at Obuasi, Ashanti Region.

In a petition signed by spokesperson Godfred Nana Kwame Atobrah on Tuesday, 28 May 2019, the family said Benjamin was “sent by PEG SOLAR GHANA to install a solar lightening system for a customer called Mr Yaw Paul Mireku at Annorkrom in the Obuasi district” but has not returned.

The family indicated that after reporting the case to the nearest police station at Denkyira Kyekyewere, they were assured by the police that investigations will be conducted into the case but have since not heard anything from the police concerning their son.

According to the family, their investigations revealed that: “They [police] tempered with the exhibit found at the crime scene”, and later told the family “that the case is not under their jurisdiction.”

“The police further asked the family to go for compensation from the company because there is no evidence to cause an arrest or suspect anybody about the death of their son.”

The Atobrah family explained that they are “troubled by these revelations which have made us to ask the following questions; can the police declare someone dead without finding any evidence of it? Can the police advise vehemently that the family should go for some form of compensation from the company rather than investigating the case thoroughly? Can’t the police arrest or invite the respective suspect(s) involved for further and better interrogation? How long can the police keep sitting on a case (which is not under their jurisdiction) before they transfer it to the appropriate command?”

The family said: “All these and others have prompted” them “to seek for higher assistance from your well-established and respected office [PIPS]”.

The petition also stated its trust in PIPS to assist them “to resolve this issue surrounding the missing[disapperance] of their son”, and asked for assistance to “unravel the mysteries concerning” the untimely loss of their son.