A trotro driver, Francis Buabeng, and his conductor, Albert Ansah, at the center of the police assault case are expected to reappear in court today [Monday, April 1] after they were granted bail on Friday.
The two were slapped with four charges of assaulting a police officer, causing road obstruction, conspiracy to commit crime and causing unlawful harm after they were seen in a video assaulting a uniform police officer.
A group of civil society organizations including, Human Rights Advocacy Centre, Amnesty International and the Ghana Private Road Transport Union GPRTU with their legal representation who stepped up to fight for justice for the suspects later revealed that the police had brutalized the suspects in their custody.
A lawyer for the suspects, Francis Xavier Sosu in an earlier Citi News interview said there were visible signs of brutality meted out to the suspects while in the custody of the Odorkor Police Station.
“From their own narration, they suffered a lot of physical abuse. They described various scenarios where they were subjected to serious beatings. They raised very serious issues that may be a concern eventually when appearance is made before the court,” he said.
“It is very sad looking at them and seeing that these are people who have really suffered some form of abuse. You can see clear signs of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. You can see the the timidy and the fear. You can feel their emotion. From our conversation, they have been safer in the BNI custody. It looks like the BNI has provided them a safe haven from abuses by the police,” he added.
Meanwhile, Samuel Agbotsey, the Campaign Coordinator of Amnesty International, which is among the many Civil Society Groups demanding justice for the suspect have said that they will not relent on their efforts in ensuring that justice is duly served.
Source: citifmonline.com
