Court Finally Receives JB Autopsy Report

The Accra Central District Court has received the much-expected autopsy report of the late Joseph Boakye Danquah-Adu, the Member of Parliament for Abuakwa North Constituency in the Eastern Region who was stabbed to death at his residence in February 2016.

The court, presided over by Ms. Gloria Laryea, said the full autopsy report was submitted to the court sealed.

In the view of the court, the report must be forwarded to the Police Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of the Ghana Police Service.

Although Dr. Lawrence Edusei, the man at the center of the controversy has submitted the report, he is not out of trouble yet.

Nana Obiri Boahen, who was in court yesterday wants the court to cite Dr.  Edusei for contempt for failing to appear before the court as ordered during the last sitting.

According to the NPP Deputy General Secretary, the Doctor disregarded and disrespected the court by failing to show up.

At the last court date, the private Legal Practitioner took a swipe at the doctor, describing his behavior as grossly disrespectful to the judiciary.

According to Nana Obiri Boahen, a new pathologist should be tasked to take over the preparation of the full autopsy report for the late legislator.

He stated that Dr. Edusei, who feels so indefensible must be made to understand that he is not an authority in his field stressing that the doctor has consistently shown gross disrespect to the order of the court and the judiciary by his constant absence in court.

Meanwhile, the presiding magistrate has said that the court will decide whether or not cite the pathologist for contempt on the next sitting.

Dr. Edusei on January 4 this year, told the court that the much sought-after autopsy report of the murdered MP had gone missing.

He claimed that his house was ransacked in September last year resulting in the loss of over a thousand files.

Although he would not directly answer whether or not he had custody of the report since September, Dr. Edusei stated that producing another report required “additional work” indicating that “he is uncertain when the report for the case would be ready.”

However, Dr. Edusei appearing before trial magistrate Arit Nsemoh two week later returned with a remix of his claim, offering to prepare a new autopsy report.

He revealed that he was working on the new autopsy and that he had received pictures from the police to help him come out with a new report.

The court has since last year been on the heels of the pathologist in a fruitless attempt to get him before the court to explain why the full autopsy was still not ready years after the death of the MP.

Dr. Edusei, had among his claims posited that the Judicial Service had not paid him for work done for the past 15 years, a reason he failed to release any report until the monies were paid him.

On October 10, 2017, the court ordered the pathologist to release the full autopsy report on the former MP for Abuakwa-North to the police to aid investigations into the case.

The order followed an application by the prosecutor who stated that Dr. Edusei had failed to release the report and that all attempts by the police to obtain it had proved futile.

The delay in the release of the report, the police claimed, was hampering their efforts to build a solid case against Daniel Asiedu, 19, aka Sexy Don Don – a phone dealer and Vincent Bosso aka Junior Agogo – a phone repairer over the murder of the legislator fondly called JB.

The accused persons were earlier dragged before the Court two days after an Accra High Court had discharged them over the murder of the legislator.

The Attorney General and Minister for Justice had earlier entered Nolle Prosequi (NP) to drop previous charges against the accused persons in respect of the case which was at the stage of empaneling a seven-member jury for the trial.

By: Jeffrey De-Graft Johnson/ thePublisher