A farmer, Mohammed Ibrahim, who identified himself as the leader of a Revolutionary Group dubbed Kanawu, has been sentenced to serve four years in jail over fake news.
Mohammed, now a convict, had claimed, among other things, that the Police Service in the Ashanti Region, under the direction of the Inspector-General of Police, Dr. George Akuffo Dampare, and the Minister for the Interior, Henry Quartey, was recruiting fake police personnel to kill citizens of Ghana during the December 7, 2024, General Elections.
He was arraigned on three counts – Publication of False News with Intent to Cause Fear and Alarm to the Public contrary to Section 208 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29); Threat of Harm contrary to Section 74 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29); and Offensive Conduct Conducive to Breach of Peace contrary to Section 207 of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960 (Act 29).
The Circuit Court in Accra, presided over by Her Honour Mrs. Evelyn Asamoah, has found him guilty on all three counts and convicted him.
He was sentenced to three years each on the charges of publication of false news and offensive conduct conducive to the breach of peace, while on the charge of threat of harm, he was sentenced to four years.
The Court said his sentences, which are to be served in hard labour, must run concurrently, meaning he will only serve the highest of the punishments, which is the four years.
Per the brief facts of the case, the accused person, Mohammed Ibrahim, claimed to be a farmer.
The Prosecution said he also identified himself as the leader of a Revolutionary Group with the Twi name Kanawu, which translates to or means “Speak and Die.”
It said that on September 3, 2024, the Ghana Police Service’s attention was drawn to a video recording of the accused person published on that fateful day on social media platforms Facebook, X, and TikTok.
In the video, the Prosecution said, the accused person was wearing a red military beret and stated that the Police Service in the Ashanti Region, under the direction of the Inspector-General of Police, Dr. George Akuffo Dampare, and the Minister for the Interior, Henry Quartey, was recruiting fake police personnel to kill citizens of Ghana during the December 7, 2024, General Elections.
The Prosecution stated that the accused person further said that he and his cohorts knew where the Minister lived and that, at the outbreak of war in Ghana, they would shoot him.
It said he further threatened to unleash violence during the elections and that on September 10, 2024, the Police declared the accused wanted, leading to his arrest.
The Prosecution said that upon a search conducted at his residence at Sowutuom, the police retrieved the red beret he used in the viral video, and he also admitted in a statement to recording the video.
He was arraigned based on those facts.
