Amnesty International, a human rights advocacy civil society organisation, has questioned the death penalty sentence handed down to the two convicted individuals in the kidnapping and murder of the Takoradi girls.
A Sekondi High Court found the two, Samuel Udeotuk Wills and John Orji, guilty of conspiracy to murder and murder.
However, in an interview with Citi News, the Campaign Coordinator of Amnesty International Ghana, Samuel Abotsey, questioned the country’s continued reliance on the death penalty, despite the fact that no one has been executed since 1992.
“In Ghana, the law still allows judges to make that decision, so we cannot force the judges or the country, but we believe that the continued use of the death penalty is not the solution.”
“In Ghana, the law still allows judges to make that pronouncement, so we cannot force the judges or the country, but we believe that continuing to use the death penalty is not the way to go because evidence has shown that… there could be mistakes in evidence gathering, mistakes in the investigation, and the wrong people could be charged.”
Mr. Abotsey also stated that in the event of new evidence affecting cases, it is preferable to rely on life sentences or fixed-term sentences.
Also read: Story so far: Takoradi murdered girls’ case
“There have been people sentenced to death, some of whom were executed, but new evidence revealed that they were not guilty of the crime.” So, in our opinion, it is better to keep the people on life or fixed-term sentences so that if new evidence emerges tomorrow, these people can be exonerated,” he said.
The two convicts have a 30-day window to file an appeal.
Back Story
In the case of the four Takoradi kidnapped girls, Samuel Udeotuk Wills and John Orji, both Nigerians, are charged with conspiracy and murder.
The case, however, did not begin with the two.
On the 16th of January 2019, a Takoradi District Court charged Samuel Udeotuk Wills with evading lawful custody, resisting arrest, and destroying public property following his rearrest on the 4th of January 2019 following his cell break on the 30th of December 2018.
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