Ex Cop In Bizarre Death

The ambition of a 27-year-old ex-policeman to get rich overnight could not materialise as he was beheaded and his body dumped into the Volta River at Akosombo on March 14, this year.

Emmanuel Appiah Kubi, the deceased, was said to have solicited the assistance of three fishermen to take him to a fetish priest across the river to multiply an amount of ¢40 million offered him by his father to start a business.

The journey, however, could not be made as he was beheaded on the banks of the river.

The deceased was dismissed from the Armour Car Squadron of the Ghana Police Service last year for misconduct.

His headless body was tied to some rocks and put in a boat to be dumped in the middle of the river but on the way, the boat capsized and one of the suspects, Famous Yevugah, 42, got drowned.

One of the fishermen, Felix Okpanye, 25, has been arrested but the other accomplice, Ebenezer Tei, alias Rastaman, 22, is on the run and the police have mounted an intensive search for his arrest.

According to the Akosombo District Police Commander, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Stephen Tetteh, Felix had gone to the police station on March 14, 2007 to report that he had been travelling to Kotoku Korpe with his brothers but on the way the boat had capsized and one of his brothers drowned.

ASP Tetteh said Felix was taken to the river bank, together with some divers, to search for the body of Felix's deceased brother but on reaching the spot, there was blood all over the place.

The district commander said the police suspected foul play but waited patiently for the body to be retrieved from the river, adding that after four hours of search, the body was finally located but there was no sign of injury to it.

He said that heightened the suspicion of the police, resulting in Felix's arrest. Upon interrogation, he confessed to the police that he and the two others had been approached by the ex-policeman to assist him have his money doubled for him.

According to ASP Tetteh, Felix said they told the deceased that they knew a fetish priest in a village across the river who could do that for him so they decided to take him there.

However, on reaching the banks of the river, Yevugah and Rastaman killed Emmanuel, tied his legs, arms and the abdomen with huge rocks and decided to dump him in the river.

He said while they were on the way to dump the body into the river, they met strong winds which capsized the boat. Felix and Rastaman managed to swim to safety but their accomplice got drowned.

According to the victim's father, Mr Emmanuel Kwame Osei, his son lived at Nii Boye Town in Accra with his mother, while he lived at Nsawam.

He said after Emmanuel's dismissal from the Police Service, Emmanuel asked him for some money to start a business so he gave him ¢40 million last Wednesday and since then he had not heard from him until he was informed about his brutal murder yesterday.

The Akosombo Police are yet to locate the whereabouts of the head of the deceased. The bodies of the two men have been deposited at the VRA Hospital awaiting autopsy, while investigations are under way.