Daniel Afari-Djan

[Joseph Ackah-Blay @BlayAckah]

A staged robbery, a grieving widow, and the confession that unraveled it all

On the night of 15 June 2013, Abdul Karim was killed in his home at ACP Estates, Pokuase. At about 9:35 p.m. His wife, Salamatu Karim, called the police. Her account was that armed robbers had broken in and killed her husband while she was bathing.

By the time officers arrived, Abdul Karim had already been rushed to hospital, where he was pronounced dead. A post-mortem revealed a fractured skull, a fractured mandible, and injuries consistent with a sustained, deliberate beating.

The case remained unresolved until the police made headway while investigating a different crime. While probing an unrelated attempted robbery, they arrested a man named Kofi Nyagbedzi. In the course of that separate matter, Nyagbedzi gave police information that pointed them toward two other men: Awudu Alhassan Sulemana, known as "Dozer," and Mohammed Sulemana, known as "Banana."

Police tracked the pair down and arrested them at Dodowa.Under interrogation, Dozer and Banana gave statements that changed the whole complexion of the case. According to the prosecution, both men admitted the initial unsolved "robbery" had been staged. There were no strangers breaking in. The person who let them into the house that night, they said, was Salamatu Karim herself, the victim's own wife, and sister to Dozer.

The prosecution's case was that Salamatu recruited Dozer and Banana, let them into the house, hid them in the bathroom, pointed out her husband to them when the moment came, supplied the weapon, and promised to pay them afterward. Dozer was convicted of murder and conspiracy, Banana of conspiracy, and Salamatu, though she never struck a blow herself, of abetment of murder for the role the confessions said she played in setting it up. All three were sentenced to death.

They appealed, first to the Court of Appeal, which affirmed the convictions in November 2018, then to the Supreme Court. Counsel for the three appellants, Raphael Alijina Debrah, raised thirteen grounds of appeal, which really came down to four arguments: that the confession statements should never have been admitted, that the trial judge's directions to the jury were flawed, that the evidence did not prove the charges beyond reasonable doubt, and that the Court of Appeal was wrong to affirm the convictions.

On the confessions, the Supreme Court noted that the trial judge had held a mini trial specifically to test whether the statements were voluntary, assessed the credibility of the men who gave them, and found they were freely made. The Court said a finding like that, made by the judge who actually watched and heard the witnesses, is not something an appellate court should casually override, and it saw no reason to hear.

On the jury directions, the Court found nothing wrong either. It described the summing-up as balanced, comprehensive, and legally accurate.

On Salamatu, her lawyers argued the evidence against her did not go far enough to prove abetment beyond reasonable doubt. The Court disagreed. It pointed to what her own husband's killers had said about her role: letting them in, hiding them, pointing out the victim, and helping conceal the crime afterward. Taken together with the medical evidence showing this was no chance robbery but a deliberate, coordinated attack, and with the testimony of the prosecution's key witness, the Court found the picture complete. Someone had to let the killers in and tell them which man to strike. The evidence said that person was her.

The Supreme Court dismissed the appeal in full. The convictions and death sentences for all three, Dozer, Banana, and Salamatu Karim, were affirmed.

Case title: Awudu Alhassan Sulemana @ Dozer, Mohammed Sulemana @ Banana & Salamatu Karim v. The Republic, Supreme Court of Ghana, Criminal Appeal No. J3/1/2020, judgment delivered 29 July 2026.

[Daniel Afari-Djan @dafaridjan]

@dr_bandak 😂😂😂

[Daniel Afari-Djan @dafaridjan]

@garyalsmith Benny is funny man

[Piers Morgan @piersmorgan]

Great to see Odegaard back on top form. Such an important player for Arsenal when he’s injury-free like this.

[Piers Morgan @piersmorgan]

This guy has built something very special at Arsenal. Our squad now looks so good, so deep, with so many great options. And they all know who The Boss is and what levels of intensity, technical excellence, commitment, and passion he demands. Thank you @m8arteta - I love it. 👏

[Daniel Afari-Djan @dafaridjan]

@dr_bandak I’ve always argued that the “so-called” grade A schools are actually the “grade B &C’ schools that transform those students in the 70th percentile and below students into fine products.

[Dr. Banda Khalifa @dr_bandak]

My final PhD GPA at Johns Hopkins is 3.90/4.0.

But there is a deeper meaning to this

My Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) aggregate was DOUBLE DIGITS. (Abofour L/A JHS)

For readers outside Ghana: the BECE is the junior high exit exam, and a lower aggregate is better. An aggregate of six (06) is excellent.

A double-digit BECE grade means you struggled, and the good senior high schools will probably not take you, especially as a science student.

Basic school and junior high school were a struggle. (Abofour R/C primary & Abofour L/A JHS)

My foundation was thin.

Nothing in my results suggested a scientist was in there.

Senior high school is where I found myself. Then medical school. Then Johns Hopkins.

I am not sharing this GPA because the number matters much.

Grades in a PhD are a by-product. They come from trying to actually understand the thing, not from chasing the A.

Some of my B's taught me more than my A's did.

I am sharing it because of what the two numbers say together.

The boy with a double-digit BECE grade and the man with the Johns Hopkins PhD GPA of 3.90/4 have the same brain.

What changed was the environment, the support, and the timing of when my potential finally got room to show.

Hundreds of thousands of students are like the early version of me.

Their circumstances arrive before their potential does.

Their early numbers describe their surroundings.

Which is why I argue for something simple in admissions and hiring:

→ Look at where someone started, not only where they are.

↳ A 70th percentile from a disadvantaged start can be more impressive than a 95th from a comfortable one.

→ Distance traveled is data. The raw number hides it.

Given the same resources, most of my junior high classmates in the small Abofour town would have posted a 3.9 GPA too.

That is the part the transcript cannot show.

[Daniel Afari-Djan @dafaridjan]

@DearGozde 88

[Daniel Afari-Djan @dafaridjan]

@CallmeAlfredo This is what happens when we try to politicise everything in this country.

[Daniel Afari-Djan @dafaridjan]

@farman4x 96

[Manasseh Azure Awuni @Manasseh_Azure]

Dr Mahamudu Bawumia in his own words.
Watch, share, and take a stand.

[Daniel Afari-Djan @dafaridjan]

@ltarsenal Are you certain it’s on Tzolis we bought??

[Daniel Afari-Djan @dafaridjan]

@David_Ornstein @TheAthleticFC @Santi_J_FM Circus 😂😂😂

[Daniel Afari-Djan @dafaridjan]

@CallmeAlfredo @mawuenaeric Hm

[Daniel Afari-Djan @dafaridjan]

@BBSimons Exactly my thought when I heard the news. The magical turnaround in 2025 is astounding but as you said, we are all waiting to see the details of the financial report

[Fabrizio Romano @FabrizioRomano]

🔵🔴🇧🇷 Gabriel Jesus will sign a two year contract at Barcelona. The agreement also includes an option to extend for extra year, until 2029.

Gabriel immediately said yes to Barcelona, seen by the Brazilian as a dream opportunity.

Arsenal authorized his travel on Monday.

[Daniel Afari-Djan @dafaridjan]

@dr_bandak Congratulations Dr!!🤝🤝🫡🫡🔥🔥

[Daniel Afari-Djan @dafaridjan]

@awoyemijoshua61 Common addition is even a problem for you yet you call yourself “an informed pundit “. SMH

[LiveScore @livescore]

Man City have made €116M in transfer profit from these stars who couldn't nail down a starting spot 🤑

Even the bench is profitable at the Etihad ♨️

[JoyNews @JoyNewsOnTV]

ECG & IMF: ECG sitting in Accra and serving the entire country is the reason why the transformer in my area is not efficient. The company is overwhelmed.

- Dennis Miracles Aboagye, Director of Communications - Bawumia Campaign #Newsfile