Two Togolese soldiers beat a Ghanaian to death over a missing SIM card

Two Togolese soldiers have been arrested for physically assaulting a Ghanaian man to death at Akato-Viépé, a community in the canton of Aflao Sagbado and on the border between Togo and Ghana, on Monday night.

The young man identified as Félix Bedi Gedzah died shortly after being conveyed to a hospital.

His death has been announced in a press statement signed by the Togolese Ministry of Security and Civil Protection, General Yark, and dated August 25, 2021.

The statement sighted by GhanaWeb stated that the two Togolese soldiers mentioned in this case were “on duty at the so-called ‘Number 20’ ‘post in Akato-Viépé (Canton of Aflao Sagbado / prefecture of the Gulf) on the line border Togo – Ghana.”

According to the statement, the soldiers asked the victim who is familiar to them, to help them recharge a cell phone.

The soldiers put in a search for the late Félix Bedi Gedzah when he failed to return their cell phones until evening.

He was later found with the phone but without the SIM card and tried to escape when he couldn’t provide explanations for the missing SIM card.

The Togolese soldiers arrested him and physically assaulted him until he passed out. His body was conveyed to the Sylvanus Olympio CHU in Lomé.

The Togolese Ministry of Security and Civil Protection, General Yark, announced that two elements of the defense forces are under strict arrest and will be punished according to the texts in force.

Following his death, the Togolese government has offered its sincere condolences to the grieving family and the people of Ghana.

The government has also called on Ghanaians to keep calm as it has launched an investigation to unravel the circumstances that led to this death.

Read the statement translated to English below:

During the night of Monday 23 to Tuesday 24 of 2021, at about 23 hours, two soldiers of the Togolese Armed Forces, on duty at the post called “Number 20” in Akato-Viepe (Canton of Aflao Sagbado/Gulf prefecture), on the Togo-Ghana border line, assaulted Bedi Gedzah Felix, a Ghanaian national, who was evacuated to a health center in Ghana where he died.

Indeed, the military perpetrators would have requested the services of the victim who is very known to them as he helps them recharge cell phones.

Having noticed that the victim did not come back until nightfall, the two soldiers went in search of him to recover the phone.

They eventually found the young man, Bedi Gedzah Felix, and the phone but without the SIM card. Unable to explain the suspicious disappearance of the SIM card, he decided to flee.

He was chased and caught in the bush before taken to the police station where he was subjected to physical abuse. The young Bedi Gedzah was later picked up by two of his relatives and evacuated to a Ghanian health center.

The next day, the victim’s parents informed the Togolese security services that the victim had died at about 3 am.

The body was brought back to Togo and deposited in the morgue of the CHU Sylvanus OLYMPIO after the first observations made by a doctor requested for this purpose.

The two soldiers were placed under arrest and will be punished in accordance with the laws of the force. In addition, an investigation has been opened to shed light on the circumstances under which this death occurred.

The Ministry of Security and Civil Protection condemns this unfortunate incident and presents, on behalf of the Togolese government, its sincere condolences to the bereaved family and to all the brotherly people of Ghana. It calls on the neighbouring population to remain calm and promises that all the light will be shed on this affair.