Ghana coup plot: Soldiers among six sentenced to death by hanging
Six individuals, comprising three soldiers, have been condemned to death by hanging in Ghana for their involvement in a coup attempt three years ago.
This marks the first treason trial in the country since 1966 when the post-independence leader Kwame Nkrumah was ousted. The arrest of the six occurred in 2021 in the capital, Accra, where they were allegedly testing weapons with the intent to overthrow the government.
Among the accused, which included a gunsmith, all pleaded not guilty during a trial that gripped the nation’s attention. Defense attorneys have expressed their intention to appeal the verdict in the Supreme Court.
Three others, including a senior police officer and two military officers, were acquitted.
The sentencing, which took place on Wednesday, saw a significant security presence outside the High Court in Accra.
The court found the six guilty of high treason and conspiracy to commit high treason, citing their arrest with locally manufactured guns, improvised explosive devices, and AK-47 rifles, as per court documents.
State prosecutors said the group had planned to organise protests, ostensibly to topple President Nana Akufo-Addo’s government ahead of the 2020 general elections.
The court said it found the evidence against the men, including intercepted communications and testimonies, compelling.
Attorney General Godfred Yeboah Dame, who led the prosecution, praised the court verdict as “significant”.
“The constitution of Ghana as the fundamental law of the country, which has sustained the stability of the nation, frowns seriously upon any attempt to overthrow a government and that is why that offence [treason] is punishable by death,” Mr Dame said.
Ghana had last carried out an execution in 1992 when it returned to democratic rule.
Last year lawmakers last year voted to abolish the death penalty for ordinary crimes, replacing it with a life sentence.
