The Kyebi District Magistrate Court in the Eastern Region yesterday declined bail for the six boys arrested in connection with the murder of George Somuah Bosompem, the Religious and Moral Education teacher at Asiakwa.

The six – Richard Amaning, 18; Mireku Emmanuel, 19; Philip Kodie, 19; Offei Frimpong, 19; Ezekiel Boadu, 20; and Evans Aboagye, alias Otega, 19 – are facing charges of conspiracy and murder.

They have been ordered by the court to reappear on July 5. The decision incensed their lawyer Peter Nimo, who has vowed to seek an order from a higher court to release them.

Prosecutor Margaret Kontoh on May 14 pleaded with the court to remand the accused persons to enable them conduct a thorough investigation into their birth records in their school to reconcile with their real ages as the defence counsel challenged the ages provided by prosecution, stating that all the accused persons are below 18 years and therefore the case must be tried at a juvenile court.

Again, the defence counsel previously pleaded alibi for two of the accused persons – Mireku Emmanuel and Philip Kodie, stating that they were not present in the community during the incident.

The case has attracted huge attention from teachers in the country and the Ghana National Teachers Association (GNAT) has been following the issue with keen interest.

GNAT’s lawyer James Agyeman Fokuo said they were interested in the legal processes and would continue to ensure that justice was served.

The association’s regional secretary of GNAT, Daniel Afedu, said they were pursuing the case to its logical conclusion and said the safety of teachers is paramount.