Anti-poaching patrol ends in tragedy at Kakum Forest Reserve

By: Eugene Dogbatse Atsu
A routine anti-poaching patrol at the Kakum Forest Reserve ended in tragedy on Saturday when a wildlife resource guard was shot dead by a suspected poacher in the Assin Kruwa area of the Central Region.

The deceased, Richard Otwey, 58, was attached to the Kakum Wildlife Division of the Forestry Commission and was on patrol with two other guards when the incident occurred.

According to the Central North Police Command, the patrol team encountered two men allegedly engaged in illegal hunting activities inside the protected forest and moved in to arrest them.

The anti-poaching patrol, which was intended to protect wildlife and deter illegal hunting, turned deadly when one of the suspects allegedly pulled out a firearm and opened fire on the officers.

Police identified the suspects as Bukari Abudu and John Mensah. Investigators said Abudu allegedly drew a single-barrel gun and “Otwey was hit in the chest and died at the scene,”

Following the shooting, the remaining members of the patrol team pursued the suspects through the forest and managed to arrest Mensah, who was subsequently handed over to the police to assist with investigations.

Abudu, however, escaped into the forest and remains at large. Police and forestry authorities have since launched a manhunt to track him down.

Investigators who visited the scene recovered a spent cartridge, footprints and the single-barrel firearm believed to have been used in the attack. The scene was located about 60 metres from the boundary of the reserve.

“The Police can confirm the killing, but we cannot comment further as investigations are ongoing,” Central North Regional Crime Officer Chief Superintendent Edmund Agyemang Badu said.

The body of the deceased has been deposited at the Abura Dunkwa Government Hospital Mortuary for preservation and a post-mortem examination.

He therefore appealed to authorities and the general public to volunteer information that could lead to the arrest of the fugitive suspect.