MPs Demand Independent Probe Into Death Of Man At West Hills Mall

Members of Parliament are demanding an oversight enquiry into circumstances leading to the killing of a young man at the West Hills mall in Accra. 32-year-old Shadrack Arloo was confirmed dead at a hospital after video footage revealed some persons attacking him while handcuffed on the floor at the mall.

A police investigation into the matter revealed that the suspect died of asphyxiation and obstruction of his airway by a foreign body suspected to be marijuana. In a statement on the floor of Parliament, the Member of Parliament for Jomoro, Dorcas Affo-Toffey together with some Members of Parliament urged the house to constitute an independent commission to investigate the matter.

I call on this August House to invoke its legislative authority to set up an independent police commission and grant it the powers to investigate, for example, instances where the police stand accused of unlawful killing. Such a response will help curb actual or potential cover-ups in the future”.

“Mr. Speaker kindly permit me to state that I have petitioned the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) to investigate the horrifying human rights violation meted out to against Shadrack. Let me also use this opportunity to urge the Commission to quicken its investigation into the matter to give the grieving family closure.

I humbly pray that the statement be referred to the Committee on Defence and Interior to conduct an independent parliamentary probe into the true circumstances leading to the death of Shadrack,” she said. The police pathologist found eight zipped packets of dry leaves that were likely drug-related in the deceased’s throat, tied with a piece of black polythene.