Prophetess killed by suspected armed robbers
Two suspected armed robbers shot dead a prophetess after they had robbed her household at Sowutuom in Accra last Friday.
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Prophetess Agnes Agyei Koomson, 50, the Founder of the Grace Saviour Ministry, was allegedly shot in the right eye by one of the robbers, while one of the assistants of the church, Mr Prince Oduro, 24, sustained gunshot wounds in the left shoulder, ribs and arm.
Though one of the robbers was unmasked, the two are yet to be identified.
The prophetess and her husband were sleeping about 1:30 a.m. when the armed robbers broke into their residence, which had six other occupants, including three children of the prophetess.
Cement blocks
When the Daily Graphic visited the rented self-contained apartment where the prophetess lived with her family at Agenda London Hill, Sowutuom, some cement blocks had been packed behind the wall.
Some neighbours suspected the robbers might have used the cement blocks to scale the wall to enter the house.
Family members who witnessed the incident, particularly the two daughters who were traumatised, indicated that the doors to the house were locked.
It is, therefore, suspected that the robbers entered the living room through one of the sliding windows which was open.
Briefing the Daily Graphic, one of the relations (name withheld) said the robbers first entered the room of a 14-year-old daughter of the prophetess and at gunpoint ordered her to lead them to her parents.
The girl, at the insistence of the robbers, was said to have knocked on the door of her parents under the pretext that she was sick.
On hearing their daughter’s voice, the couple opened the door and were attacked by the armed men.
When the armed men ordered them to bring out all the money they had on them, the prophetess was said to have pointed to some envelopes that contained offerings from the church.
After ransacking the room, one of the suspects opened the envelopes and removed the money, which was about GH¢2,000, and also took the couple’s mobile phones.
No mercy
The family member said at gunpoint the couple were then forced to take the robbers to the other rooms.
They first went into the room of a 23-year-old daughter of the couple.
After waking her up, the gun men demanded money, but she gave them her purse which contained only GH¢5 and her two mobile phones.
The robbers, he said, then went to another room where the church assistant and one of the couple’s sons were sleeping and also demanded money from them.
Since the young men were unable to give the suspects money, the robbers took a laptop belonging to the couple’s son.
The prophetess, according to the eyewitness, knelt down and pleaded with the suspects to spare her son his laptop.
“The two men did not have mercy on the crying woman but rather shot her and she fell down,” the eyewitness said.
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Husband passes out
The 60-year-old husband of the prophetess, Mr Kennedy Agyei Koomson, was said to have collapsed after his wife was shot.
When Mr Koomson fell, one of the suspects asked the other to shoot him but he kicked him, and said, “He is dead already.”
The two robbers then fled with their booty.
The family then tried to resuscitate Mr Koomson and rushed the prophetess and Oduro to the Police Hospital in Accra.
At the hospital, Oduro was admitted, while the prophetess was pronounced dead.
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The body of the deceased has since been deposited at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital (KBTH) morgue.
Targeted killing
When contacted, the Public Relations Officer of the Accra Regional Police Command, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Mr Freeman Tettey, confirmed the incident.
According to him, a complaint was made at the Sowutuom Police Station at 6 a.m. last Saturday, after which police personnel were dispatched to the scene.
Mr Tettey said the police found two empty shells and blood-stains in the living room and the master bedroom.
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He said though the suspects robbed the victims, “the police have not ruled out targeted killing”.
He explained that there had been a dispute over the piece of land on which the prophetess had her church. However, he said the dispute was recently resolved.
“The police will invite all those involved in the dispute to assist with investigations,” he said.
writer’s email: emelia.ennin@graphic.com.gh