14-year-old convict spends 5 extra months in jail despite being discharged by court
14-year-old convict spends 5 extra months in jail despite being discharged by court.
A 14-year-old was forced to spend an additional five months in prison despite being discharged by a Circuit Court in Nkawie.
The oversight was discovered during an in-prison sitting of the Justice For All Program held on July 22, 2024, at the Kumasi Central Prisons, where cases of 31 pre-trial inmates were reviewed.
The Steering Committee Chairperson for the Justice For All Program, Justice Angelina Mensah Homiah, described the incident as unfortunate and emphasized the importance of their with inmates.
“This is very unfortunate and we will ensure that this prisoner who has overstayed for five months leaves the Kumasi Central Prisons today before we also leave the premises. Had it not been the Justice For All program, we would not have uncovered this event,” she stressed.
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CSP Alex Adjei, the acting officer in charge of the Ashanti Region Prison Command, expressed his shock over the incident.
He explained that a signed court warrant had been presented by the investigator in charge of the case.
“I am surprised by this Nkawie case but it is not our fault. So far as the warrant is genuine, we don’t know any other thing until the police come for you,” he explained.
Justice Angelina Mensah Homiah assured that the investigator responsible for the mishap would be held accountable.
“I continue to ask who signed the warrant for the investigator to bring the accused person back to prison? In this case, he was discharged by the court. You have told me he has been released now but I am still probing for further answers. The Justice for All program needs more answers,” she said.
