Two cleaners at Twumasiwaa General Hospital and Specialist Centre were remanded into police custody by the Kaneshie District Court after they fatally strangled the facility’s cashier.
Cleaners Gideon Vitalis, 24, and Mohammed Mubarak, 23, are both being prosecuted for allegedly killing Patience Ago Quaye, 35, and successfully siphoning diesel from a backup generator.
The suspects are also accused of stealing GHC 1,200 from the facility and a deceased person’s phone, which they later sold for GHC 150 in Madina.
The two suspects have been charged with preliminary counts of conspiracy to commit a crime, namely murder, and murder, according to starrfm.com.gh.
On Friday, March 17, they appeared before the court presided over by Her Worship Ama Adomako Kwakye, but their pleas were not accepted.
Briefs of the case as reported by starrfm.com.gh:
The deceased Patience Ago Quaye, 35, was a single mother who worked as a cashier at the Twumasiwaa Medical Centre in Ogbojo, close to ARS, Accra, according to Chief Inspector Anane.
He claimed that Mohammed Mubarik (A1), a cleaner employed at the same facility, and Gideon Vitalis, a Nigerian national, are the two accused.
According to the prosecutor, Vitalis was fired for stealing in the month of February 2023 and given a warning not to enter the hospital again.
He testified before the court that despite management’s warnings, Vitalis had been routinely sneaking into the yard with the assistance of Mubarak, who was still employed at the facility, for criminal activities.
The prosecutor claimed that on the evening of March 6, 2023, the deceased reported to work as the on-duty cashier for the morning shift.
According to Chief Inspector Anane, Mubarak called Vitalis that evening to come to the location so they could siphon diesel from a backup generator.
He claimed that the two accused individuals had plans to steal the daily sales from the cash office after successfully siphoning the diesel.
Strangled
The victim, who is now deceased, came out to use the restroom at the Administrator’s Office on March 7, 2023, the prosecutor claimed, at around 1:30 in the morning.
He claimed that A2 followed the victim to the Administrator’s Office, grabbed her from behind, and strangled her to death. A2 claimed that Mubarak, who was watching the victim’s movements, quickly called Vitalis to warn him.
According to the prosecutor, Vitalis dragged the deceased’s lifeless body, dumped it in the store room, and then locked the door.
Stolen items
He claimed Vitalis entered the cash office with the key, unlocked the door, ransacked the contents, and fled with the deceased’s cellphone and GHC 1,200 in cash.
“The next morning the deceased was nowhere to be found. The management and her family mounted a search for her but she could not be found until a report was made to the Police as missing.
“A2 who knew that the deceased has been killed and dumped in the store room pretended and was part of the search party,” Chief Inspector Anane told the court.
He claimed that when police arrived at the location on March 8, 2023, they conducted a thorough search of all the offices and rooms before realizing they had not been able to locate the key to the storeroom. As a result, the door was forced open, and the victim’s body was discovered in a state of decomposition.
Pretence
According to the prosecutor, A1 fled the scene of the crime while A2 remained at his post and pretended to be innocent, but the investigation led to A1’s capture at his hideout in Koforidua.
According to him, A1 confessed to conspiring with A2 to have the deceased killed so they could gain access to the cash register and steal the money during questioning.
The prosecutor claimed that A1 gave the GH1,200.00 cash to a friend for safekeeping after selling the deceased’s phone to Ebenezer Dzigbehlo in Madina for GH150.00. Continuing investigations, according to the prosecutor.
