Four persons destroy shrine after looting it

Juaso (Ash), Sept. 28, GNA - Four persons all belonging to the same church including two pastors who allegedly looted the Anhwereso shrine at Konongo in the Asante-Akim North District of Ashanti and set it ablaze are in the grip of the law. The culprits, Patricia Anima, founder of the "Lord Will Fight For Humanity Ministry" and currently a student in Germany, Joseph Wellington and Stephen Adongo, both pastors and Nana Yaa Agyeiwaa, unemployed, were said to have unlawfully entered the shrine and stole a quantity of gold dust valued at 50 million cedis, cash 3.5 million cedis, two swords and a black stool.

The four were on Wednesday arraigned at a circuit court in Juaso for conspiracy to commit crime, unlawful entry into a shrine, stealing and causing damage to property.

The court presided over by Mr Jacob B. Boon, convicted them on their own plea of guilty but granted them bail in the sum of 50 million cedis each and ordered them to liaise with Nana Akosua Anhwere, complainant and owner of the shrine and compensate her to the tune of 61.5 million cedis, the value of the damage caused to the shrine. Based upon the outcome of the meeting with the complainant the court said it would pass sentence.

Police Chief Inspector Stephen Opare told the court that the complainant had owned her shrine for the past 35 years. He said Patricia Anima, the first accused, was the founder of the 'Lord Will Fight for Humanity Ministry' and a relative of the complainant, while Wellington and Adongo were pastors of the church and Agyeiwaa a member.

The prosecution said Anima recently approached the complainant and told her that she had a vision to collect the two swords at her shrine but the complainant refused to grant her request.

Chief Inspector Opare said on July 7, this year, the four accused persons unlawfully entered the shrine and made away with all the items including cash of 3.5 million cedis after which they set it ablaze. He said the complainant reported the crime to the Konongo police who arrested the accused persons and that during interrogations the police retrieved the two swords from the accused persons.