Two accused persons slapped with death sentence

27-07-2011
The Bolgatanga High Court Presided over by the Supervising Judge, His Lordship Justice Godwin Kwasi-Kuma and 7 other jurors have unanimously ordered the death sentence of two accused persons for murder charges. The two, Woampoabil Lamisi Zong, a native of Tongo in the Talensi-Nabdam District of the Upper East Region and Ampana Yakubu Aglim also from Sandema were charged with an offence of murder at a separate hearing. The verdict according to the court is in contrary to section 46 of the Criminal Code of 1960 Act 289. A Registrar at the regional high court, Mr. Paul Pu-engyii, who confirmed the fact of the case to Radio Ghana’s Isaac Asare, said the accused persons pleaded not guilty to the charges levelled against them but their plea were refused by the court after careful investigations conducted on their respective cases. The accused persons, he disclosed, are currently in the custody of the Police and would be sent to Tamale for further action to be taken. The case of Woampoabil Lamisi Zong, took place on May, 10, 2007 at Datuku, a suburb of Tongo near Bolgatanga. She was alleged to have internationally caused the death of one Teni Zongoby by inflicting machete wounds on her whiles she was asleep. Teni died in the process while the accused was arrested after the act and charged for causing unlawful harm leading to the death of the deceased who is believed to be a nursing mother and at the same time married to the brother of the accused. The prosecution of the case, according to the registrar started with 5 witnesses of which the accused also put his defense. The accused was pronounced guilty of committing murder and subsequently slapped with death sentence after careful consultations by jurors handling the case. The verdict was executed on a unanimous decision led by His Lordship Godwin Kwasi-Kumah. In the case involving Ampana Yakubu Aglim, facts revealed that he and the deceased, Afia Ali were marriage couples living at Bilinsa, a suburb of Sandema in the Builsa District. On March, 13, 2005, the accused person and his wife left their home for Sandema market at about. 8. am and at a point in time the accused person was seen dragging his wife , now deceased and quarreling with her. The accused in the course of the verbal exchanges assaulted the deceased who fell in the process. Sensing danger, the accused rode his bicycle away leaving the wife to her fate. Later that day the lifeless body of the deceased was found and conveyed to the Sandema hospital. Medical examination conducted on the body revealed that the deceased died of blunt abdominal injury which caused internal bleeding in her abdomen. The accused, Ampana Aglim, 49 was later apprehended during police investigation and subsequently accused of intentionally causing the death of his wife, Afia Ali. The accused pleaded not guilty to the charge but his plea was not taken. He has therefore been sentenced to death through a unanimous decision taken by 7 jurors of the Bolgatanga high court.
GBC END IA/