Man kills girl, 7; defiles her corpse

Residents of Athadika in Ashaiman have been thrown into a state of shock and fear following the murder and defilement of a 7-year-old girl Sunday by a 20-year old man.

Information reaching JoyNews alleged the suspect lured the child into his kiosk and strangled her to death.

Contrary to earlier reports however, the suspect has delivered sickening revelations, saying he murdered the girl for ritual purposes, and that he defiled her corpse following her murder.

Doris Mensah, aunty of the murdered child, told JoyNews' Beatrice Adu that she had been washing clothes with the little girl, whose name has been withheld, on Sunday morning and sent her to buy bread for their breakfast.

However, she said, the child never returned home.
Doris says the family began a search for her and was approached by a young girl who claimed she had seen the suspect lure the missing 7-year-old into his kiosk and heard the child scream.

Upon entering the room, she says, they discovered her niece's naked and lifeless body.

According to her, the suspect told the grieving family that he had been asked to provide the bodies of three children as part of a ritual to obtain riches.

Proving true to his claims, police apparently discovered blood-stained children's clothes and flip flops (slippers) in the kiosk, indicating the suspect may have been responsible for the disappearances of other children in the area.

Visibly upset, Doris called for the police to take the matter seriously and ensure that her niece's murder does not become a “foolish case”.

According to her, children have been going missing in the neighbourhood and it is high time something is done about it.

Neighbours, it seems could not agree with Doris more. News of the little girl's murder has rocked the residents to the core and one woman, Alice, who spoke to Beatrice expressed her concern for the safety of children in the area.

She indicated that this is not the first time a child has gone missing, saying “for now I've heard of about four cases here. They used to come, 'please have you seen a little girl, a little boy?'” adding that it could happen to anyone.

She was concerned for her own children, who she says often commute between two homes.

“What if the child is going and they just kill him or kidnap him on the way?” she worried.

Police are quite keen to pursue the case and JoyNews can confirm that it [the case] has been transferred from the Tema Regional Police to the CID headquarters for investigations.

Meanwhile the suspected murderer remains behind bars.

Listen to Beatrice's report below: