Sogakope: Assembly member shot dead

Resident of Sogakope in the Volta Region are in a state of shock over the alleged killing of the Assembly Member for Sogakope South, Marcus Mawutor Adzahli, by unknown assailants.

It is alleged that the assailants broke into Adzahli’s house in the wee hours of yesterday and shot him repeatedly, after which they made away with an undisclosed amount of money.

The deceased’s wife and one of his two children are said to be in critical condition from the attack. The woman has been transferred to the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra, while a scan on the daughter has revealed that there are some pellets imbedded in her body.

The incident, which comes on the heels of similar incidents in recent months, infuriated some youth of the town, leading to the blockage of the main Sogakope-Accra road in protest against what they described as ‘insecurity in the area’.

The situation led to a pile up of vehicles at both ends of the Sogakope Bridge for more than four hours.

The youth were eventually persuaded to remove the road block about 2 p.m. yesterday, following interventions by some opinion leaders of the town, including Mr Maxwell Lukutor, a youth leader.

The agitated youth later converged on the Sogakope District Police Station to register their displeasure.

Incident

Efforts to get the police to give details about the incident had proved futile as of the time of going to press.

The District Police Commander, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Mr Michael Zaa, declined to speak to the Daily Graphic when contacted.

The deceased’s sister, Selorm Adzahli, claimed that she had watched a movie with her brother, after which they both retired to their respective rooms.

After some time, according to her, she heard gunshots and rushed out, only to meet some suspected armed robbers, who ordered her to go back to her room or she would be killed

Another witness, who declined to give his name, said residents around the assembly member’s house alleged that they were woken up by gunshots from the deceased’s residence, but said they were scared and defenceless and so could not intervene.

According to him, about eight armed men broke into Adzahli’s house around 1 a.m. and shot him several times, after which they made away with some money.

The youth of Sogakope have appealed to the police to beef up security in the area to help curb the recent spate of robberies and killings.

“Everybody is afraid for his life. The police must step up their game and help put a stop to this state of fear and panic,” they said.

The incident is about the fifth in Sogakope in the last three years. The casualties include a worker of the now defunct hotel, Nana’s Lodge, who was shot at dawn by unknown assailants.

Some nurses in the town also suffered attacks from armed men.

A young man, whose name has been given as Cyril, was also shot in the thigh at Tefle Tademe, near Vume.

Cyril, who is currently on admission at the Dzodze Hospital, was saved by residents, who rushed to his rescue, causing the assailants to run away.

Deceased

Adzahli, who is said to be in his 30s, was an entrepreneur and leading mobile money and Vodafone cash agent in the Volta Region.

The deceased, whose body has since been deposited at the South Tongu District Hospital in Sogakope, was elected assembly member for the Sogakope South Electoral Area in the last local level elections in 2019.