Kumasi: Police Brutality Victim Buried With Machete, Bullet, And Eggs

The late Osei Tawiah

It was indeed a sight to behold at the funeral of the late Osei Tawiah, who was allegedly brutalised to death at Krofrom, a suburb of Kumasi by some personnel of the Ghana Police Service. Relatives of the deceased who have suspected a foul play in his death despite an autopsy report by pathologists at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH) claiming he died of natural causes, rained all forms of curses on suspected killers of the young man.

The relatives after reigning the curses, armed the corpse with offensive weapons including a machete and a bullet. Eggs, sponge, a pair of shoes, a cap, pepper and other items were also placed in the coffin of the late Osei Tawiah.

The items, according to the relatives of the deceased are meant to aid Yaw Tawiah in the spirit world to avenge his death. Nhyira FM's Kwasi Debrah reported that the items were given to the corpse 'because he through another person requested that he should be given these items so he can effectively avenge his death.'

Relatives of the deceased were earlier denied the body last week after they had contested the autopsy report performed by KATH.  The autopsy report made public by Dr Osei Sampane, Head of the Pathology Department at KATH on June 1, 2016, said Tawiah,27, died of a heart attack.

 Reasons for refusal KATH explained that the family had by then not complied with procedure and presented the necessary documentation for the body to be released. KATH said since the matter was in the hands of the police, it expected the family to have gone for a copy of the death certificate before coming for the body.

Subsequently, the family spokesman Kofi Boadi said, the police had submitted all the necessary documents which necessitated the family to go for the death certificate for the body to be realeased. “We have submitted the death certificate together with a burial permit for the body to be released and, hopefully, we will lay him to rest today,” he said.

Following their rejection of the autopsy report, the hospital gave the family an option of either go to a private pathologist to conduct an independent autopsy or present a letter to KATH indicating it had accepted the first autopsy report based on which the body would be released.

The Public Relations Manager of KATH, Mr Kwame Frimpong, told the Daily Graphic that, since the matter has a legal implication, KATH needed to have a written document to tender in court in case it was being challenged.

But after the family submitted the death certificate with the necessary documents last Tuesday, KATH appeared to have softened its grounds to enable the young man to be laid to rest. He was sent to Kentinkyiren-Kyiransa in the Atwima Kwanwoma district for burial.