Authorities at the Kumasi Central Prisons have rejected a convicted criminal following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Kofi Michael was handed a 15-year jail term by the Bekwai Circuit Court on Thursday, April 16, for his involvement in an armed robbery incident, Correspondent Jonathan Ofori reported.
He was arrested by police in the Bosome Freho District, where he had been on remand.
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Police escorted him to the Kumasi Central Prisons to begin the jail term only for authorities to turn him away, sparking off widespread discontent among the police.
The convict has since been brought to the Asiwa Police Station and detained.
Officers exposed due to lack of quarantine center, PPE
Correspondent Ofori reported that the facility, which currently accommodates over 2000 inmates instead of 500, has no quarantine facility to monitor persons who may show symptoms of the deadly virus.
Unlike the Nsawam Maximum Prisons, many other correctional centers in the country lack such facilities to monitor inmates who may show symptoms of the virus.
“The Kumasi Prisons has no such facility. Even available PPE are being bought by the officers themselves or other benefactors. When you visit the facility, it is evident that the officers are not resourced to discharge their duties in the wake of this outbreak,” Ofori reported.
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Chief Justice’s directive
Ghana’s Chief Justice, Kwasi Anin Yeboah, had issued a number of directives to the bench in a bid to decongest the courts and by extension the prisons.
“We are operating in very unusual times with no precedents to guide us. It is therefore imperative that all Stakeholders in Justice delivery system work together to ensure that the needs of the citizenry for Justice are adequately satisfied,” Justice Yeboah said in a statement.
The country’s Judicial Service also directed courts to practice strict case management techniques to curb the spread of the virus.
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Parts of a statement issued by the service for instance, said that: “Judges should grant long adjournments in matters which do not require immediate resolution”.
The pandemic has infected over two million persons globally with at least 140,000 deaths. Ghana’s Covid-19 case stands at 641 with eight deaths.
Source: Daily Mail