Inmate strangled another inmate to death

AN inmate of the Accra Psychiatric Hospital allegedly went berserk on Saturday night and strangled a fellow inmate to death.
 Akua Pokua, 27, also pounced on another inmate and caused severe injuries to her eyes and head.
The suspect is said to have torn part of the chiffon red dress worn by Charlotte Nyarko, 35, and used it to strangle her before attacking another victim, Hannah Martey, 30.
According to the Accra Regional Police Public Relations Officer, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Mr Freeman Tettey, the suspect was admitted to the hospital from Kasoa barely a week ago, while Nyarko had been on admission there since 1986.
He said about 9:30 p.m. on Saturday, January 12, 2013, Pokua, who was on Female Ward Two with other inmates, suddenly became aggressive and started attacking the others.
The nurses on duty managed to put her in an isolated ward at the hospital but, unknown to them, Nyarko and Martey were resting in the same ward.
As soon the nurses closed the door of the ward and left for their offices, Pokua attacked the two inmates when she saw them lying on the bed.
Mr Tettey said the nurses did not hear the screams from the isolated ward because their office was about 60 metres away.
When Pokua, who is heavily built, killed Nyarko, she launched an attack on Martey, hit her head against a wall and attempted to remove her eyes.
However, Martey’s screams were so loud that they caught the attention of the nurses who rushed to the ward, only to find Nyarko dead on the floor, with her red dress tied around her neck.
He said the nurses managed to subdue Pokua, after which she was chained before they made a report to the police.
Martey was rushed to the Ridge Hospital in Accra where she was treated and discharged.
The body of the deceased has been deposited at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital awaiting autopsy.
DSP Tettey said the police were in a dilemma, as the suspect was not in a state to give her statement, a situation which would make it very difficult for the police to investigate the matter.