Identity of soldiers, scene of shooting etc: Military gives more details on ‘murder’ of soldier at Kasoa

The Ghana Armed Forces, on May 1, 2024, confirmed the death of a junior officer who was shot and killed at Millennium City, Kasoa, in the Central Region.

The statement, signed by E. Aggrey-Quarshie, the Director General of Public Relations, provided further details about the land dispute that resulted in the fatal shooting.

While confirming some details reported by the media and corroborated by the police, new information was provided regarding the identity of the three soldiers involved.

The military also disclosed details about the disputed land and how the police disarmed and arrested the shooter, Benlord Ababio, at the scene of the incident.

Below are the new details gleaned from the military statement:

About the Parcel of Land:

The statement indicated that the disputed land was a “half plot of land in dispute at Millennium City,” which belonged to Lance Corporal (L/Cpl) Omar Abdul Rahman (one of the survivors of the attack).

Identities of the Three Soldiers Involved:

Lance Corporal (L/Cpl) Omar Abdul Rahman had gone to secure his land with two other colleagues; L/Cpl Danso Michael (deceased) and L/Cpl Ametus Matthew, who also survived.

Omar stopped developers aligned to suspect:

“Omar and his colleagues stopped the people from working and proceeded to the Millennium City Police Station to report the issue,” the statement noted.

This contradicts reports that they were resisted by the new developers, after which they proceeded to the police station.

The sequence of events leading to shooting:

“While at the Police Station, the acclaimed owner of the land arrived with two others believed to be land guards, and confronted the soldiers, during which they started firing at the deceased soldier who was going to park a vehicle at the Police Station.

“The police disarmed and arrested the shooter after realizing L/Cpl Danso had been hit by the rounds fired,” the statement added.

Body transported to 37 Military Hospital:

The GAF added that the deceased soldier’s body was retrieved from the vehicle and “has since been deposited at the 37 Military Hospital morgue.”

Read the full GAF statement below