“We still have more time for us to be able to work within the limit that we have or the hours of detention to be able to prosecute him or to be able to put all our facts together and put him before a court,” the Public Relations Officer at the Accra Regional Police Command, ASP Effia Tenge said on Eyewitness News.

[contextly_sidebar id=”7OgF0d6ymUV7R6bWD7G9O9VsCi73IOkS”]Even if a strong case is not put together before then, ASP Tenge said the police could “plead with the court to remand him so we can do further investigations if by that time we have not been able to gather what we are looking for.”

According to ASP Tenge, the suspect, still unnamed, has so far denied the allegations against him.

Probe into misconduct

As the rape case has unraveled, the issue of suspected police misconduct has come up for discussion.

Initial reports indicated that when the case was reported to the Airport Police, the officer on duty is reported to have accompanied the victim to the Airport Hills residence of the suspect, supervised the packing of her belongings, and only ensured her November salary of Ghc350 was paid her without any arrest being effected.

ASP Tenge said investigations were also being carried out into the suspicions of misconduct and negligence “whatever it is that we find out, or we believed due process was not followed, those ones will be handled internally.”

But shedding some light on the victim’s first visit to the police where an assault complaint was made, she noted that “to her [the rape victim], she didn’t even want to pursue it.”

“All that she wanted was the assistance of the police to be able to accompany to her to her boss’ house so she collects her belongings so that is what the police did. She also demanded that she has worked in that house for the period of a month and therefore, she has the right to collect her monthly salary.”

No complaints were made of previous rape and the issue of rape had not even come in the reports, ASP Tenge added.

Background

The victim in this rape and assault case, who speaks only Ewe and French, said the suspect beat her after his apparent displeasure with the coffee she had prepared for him.

Following the incident, he dragged her to a bedroom and raped her, according to the victim, who spoke to Citi News at the police station.

She said he slapped her twice in her face, finally overpowered her and dragged her to his bedroom to rape her.

She had also told the Daily Graphic newspaper that she is consistently harassed for sex by her boss anytime his wife was not at home.

Former AG to serve as victim’s lawyer

Ghana’s former Attorney General, Marietta Brew Appiah-Oppong, has stepped in to serve as the lawyer of the victim.

Mrs. Appiah-Oppong told Citi News she was keenly following the case and expressed some satisfaction with the course of the investigations so far, and said she will ensure justice is served.

“We are fortunate to have caught this one early so that the investigation can be done properly. Very often, by the time we become aware of a situation like this, time has elapsed, evidence is lost and it becomes very difficult to follow up on it. That is why we are very keen to follow up on this one to make sure that the proper investigation and proper prosecution is also done,” Mrs. Appiah-Oppong said.

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By: Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Lebanese rape suspect will face court – Police appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The victim said the suspect beat her after his apparent displeasure with the coffee she had prepared for him and subsequently raped her.

[contextly_sidebar id=”A9YkLXDkpEvXHBzHeMK1Mpgcd9PJ0XAp”]Mrs. Appiah-Oppong said she was keenly following the case, amid indications there may have been some negligence on the part of some Airport police personnel.

The former Attorney General, however expressed some satisfaction with the course of the investigations so far, and said she will ensure justice is served.

The fact that the police jumped onto the case early bodes well for the investigation, she added.

“The police started their investigation last night and it is continuing so we will know what the results of the investigation are soon. So far they have done a good job, and I believe they are going to continue with that. I am definitely going to follow up on this to make sure that justice is served.”

“We are fortunate to have caught this one early so that the investigation can be done properly. Very often, by the time we become aware of a situation like this, time has elapsed, evidence is lost and it becomes very difficult to follow up on it. That is why we are very keen to follow up on this one to make sure that the proper investigation and proper prosecution is also done,” Mrs. Appiah-Oppong said.

Police probing possible ‘cover-up’

Meanwhile, some police personnel from the Airport Police command are facing questioning over what appears to be negligence in the alleged rape.

When the case was reported to the Airport Police, the officer on duty is reported to have accompanied the victim to the Airport Hills residence of the suspect, supervised the packing of her belongings, and only ensured her GHc 350 November salary was paid her without any arrest being effected.

The Airport Police Divisional Commander, Isaac Kwadwo Asante, however, refuted claims that a police officer from his outfit accompanied the victim to the residence of the suspect.

“We had the information on the platform, and we made an immediate follow-up. As I speak, I have invited the personnel at Airport [Police Station] and I am interrogating them.”

“From what we heard from the victim and their entries made at the Airport police station, the initial complaint was assault. The rape issue came here when it was referred to DOVVSU [Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit ] yesterday [Sunday] in the afternoon. So we made the follow-up and he has been arrested,” he narrated to Citi News.

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By: Caleb Kudah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Former AG Marietta Brew to represent victim in Lebanese rape case appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The 19-year-old was allegedly raped by her Lebanese employer, reportedly for the fourth time before his arrest.

[contextly_sidebar id=”GWTc9nBeoXX0piw94bepmwWZt6Cek0as”]However, when the case was reported to the Airport Police, the Officer on duty is reported to have accompanied the victim to the Airport Hills residence of the suspect, supervised the packing of her belongings and ensured that her GHc 350 November salary was paid her.

No arrest was effected at the time.

The Airport Police Divisional Commander, Isaac Kwadwo Asante, however refuted claims that a police officer from his outfit accompanied the victim to the residence of the suspect, but said investigations are ongoing into the police’s handling of the matter.

“It wasn’t the Airport Police [who escorted her]… I think I have made this thing clear,” he stated.

“We had the information on the platform, and we made an immediate follow-up. As I speak, I have invited the personnel at Airport [Police Station] and I am interrogating them.”

“From what we heard from the victim and their entries made at the Airport police station, the initial complaint was assault. The rape issue came here when it was referred to DOVVSU [Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit ] yesterday [Sunday] in the afternoon. So we made the follow-up and he has been arrested.”

The Airport Police Divisional Commander further urged the media and the public to give him some time “so we [the police] can go a bit further with the investigation.”

Background

The victim in this rape and assault case, who speaks only Ewe and French, said the suspect beat her after his apparent displeasure with the coffee she had prepared for him.

Following the incident, he dragged her to a bedroom and raped her, according to the victim, who spoke to Citi News at the police station.

She said he slapped her twice in her face, finally overpowered her and dragged her to his bedroom to rape her.

She had also told the Daily Graphic newspaper that she is consistently harassed for sex by her boss anytime his wife was not at home.

Former AG to serve as victim’s lawyer

Ghana’s former Attorney General, Marietta Brew Appiah-Oppong, has stepped in to serve as the lawyer of the victim.

After a closed-door meeting with the police leadership, she told Citi News that she will keenly follow the process to ensure justice is served to the 19-year-old victim.

Mrs. Appiah-Oppong also bemoaned the fact that such cases are often investigated slowly.

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By: Caleb Kudah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Police probing possible ‘cover-up’ in Lebanese rape case appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.