Court adjourns Ablekuma Central election shooter case to February 15

An Accra Circuit Court has adjourned the case involving a journalist who was shot during the 2020 general elections at Ablekuma Central to February 15, 2021.

The suspect, Collins Quarcoo, also known as Kola, was arraigned for allegedly shooting Pius Asiedu Kwanin, a journalist with the Newswatch Ghana online portal, in the leg, and injuring some other persons at the Ablekuma Central Collation Centre on December 8, 2020.

The hearing of the case has been adjourned on several occasions largely due to the inability of the presiding judge, Emmanuel Essandoh, to show up in court as a result of ill health.

Lawyer for Mr. Kwanin, Julius Opoku Agyei said they may have to petition the Chief Justice to move the case to another court due to the constant adjournments.

“The substantive judge before whom the matter in circuit court 4 is still indisposed, so the case was placed before the Judge in Circuit Court 9 who has adjourned the matter. It was adjourned to 15th February 2021.

“My understanding is that the matter has not been formally transferred from Circuit Court 4 so when Circuit Court 4 Judge resumes, the docket should go back for the continuation of the hearing of the matter, but the matter can also be transferred, so we will see what happens in Court 4 and see whether we should the petition for the transfer of the case or wait for the Court 4 Judge to sit on the case.”

Collins Quarcoo had pleaded not guilty to all six counts of causing unlawful harm when he first appeared in court on December 17, 2020.

He was denied bail but a High Court granted him bail last week.

There were 61 recorded cases of electoral and post-electoral violence across the country.

Twenty-one of the incidents were true cases of electoral violence, six of which involved gunshots.