A displeased family in Jachie, Ashanti Region, believes police mistreated their son, causing him to die while in police detention.
It was reported on Monday 7th March 2024 that a suspected phone thief died in Jachie in the Bosomtwi District Police cell after allegedly refusing a bail term to the victim and threatening to sue the Jachie Police command for the loss of their family member.
According to information gathered, the family of the deceased, Ernest Kofi Acheampong indicated that their son was arrested on the 4th of March 2023 by the police for stealing a mobile phone belonging to someone still unknown till his death in custody.
The Abusuapanin of the deceased, Yaw Fosu narrating the incident said, the police called him on that fateful day that his son was in the grips of the police for the above-mentioned offence.
Interestingly, the police refused to grant bail to the victim, and neither agreed to tell him (Abusuapanin) about the owner of the phone when he got to the police station.
After keeping him for four days in cell, he received a phone call on Tuesday morning, when he got to the police station, the commander, including other police officers told him (Abusuapanin) that Kofi Acheampong, the deceased has committed suicide, and they have made provisions for him to take the body to the mortuary.
Having realized the posture of the police, he agrees, and the body was sent to the Jachie-Pramso St Michael’s Hospital.
Abusuapanin Yaw Fosu averred further that, the Police called him again to the station, by the Kuntenase District Police Commander, Eric Akwaboah demanding the burial of the victim, but he declined to stress the conditions that led to the death is suspicious to the family.
“I was told that my son stood on a plastic bucket to commit suicide”, on the same vein, he stood on an iron bucket and considering the nature of the cell, it will be difficult for someone to do such a thing.
The most disturbing aspect of it was that when I got to the police station, the boy’s dead body was lean on the cell wall, he did not urinate or defecate during the suicide.
Through all these instances, the police explanations did not go down well with the family, and they believe seeking redress further will help unravel the genesis that led to the boy’s death in police custody despite their refusal to grant the body bail or tell the family who the complainer was.
However, the body of the boy is still at St Michael’s Hospital at Jachie-Pramso pending investigations.
