The High Court has convicted two teenagers of murder and conspiracy to commit murder in the 2021 killing of a 10-year-old boy in Kasoa.
After three years of legal proceedings, the court sentenced Nicholas Kini, who was 18 at the time of the crime, to life imprisonment.
Whereas the second teenager, who was 15 at the time, has been pass to the juvenile court for sentencing, as the High Court cannot sentence minors.
Reports indicate that, the boy arrived, and someone struck him on the head with a stick. Despite pleading for his life, they hit him with cement blocks and buried him alive. Suffocation was later confirmed as the cause of death.
Case Details
Investigators revealed that the first accused confessed to plotting the murder after watching a video of a spiritualist who promised wealth in exchange for GH¢5,000 and human blood. Further, He contacted Kini, who suggested they consult a fetish priest. The priest allegedly demanded the money and human blood, prompting the teens to plan a kidnapping and ransom scheme.
The victim was coax to an unfinished building by the first accused, pretending to offer him a game.
Prosecution’s Case
The trial, which began in March 2023, featured testimony from seven witnesses, including the victim’s father, relatives of the first accused, police officers, a detective, and the pathologist who conducted the post-mortem.
The victim’s father testified that he found his son’s body in an uncompleted building after his wife discovered it. The first accused’s sister testified that she saw her brother and Kini at the scene and informed her mother, leading to the boy’s discovery. Both teens eventually confessed to their involvement in the crime.
