New train accident: four persons remanded in custody

Four more people are facing the wrath of the law for their role in the new train accident. The four, are 24-year-old gas welder, Kokuo Koudjo, 52-year-old Patrick Kwaku Sosu, 28-year-old Alaza Prosper and 31-year-old Emmanuel Fiadugbe.

Assistant State Attorney, Christabel Selma Anafuree who led the prosecution told the court that the four aided Abel Dzidotor, the convicted truck driver to leave the Hyundai truck on the railway line. She to the court that Kokuo Kuodjo bought blocks from a block factory at Juapong and sent them to Abortia using the underpass.

However, after offloading the truck they decided to cross over through the railway lines to get a shortcut to the Akuse-Juapong road. Upon getting to the railway line, they realized the truck could not cross so they gathered stones and placed them by the side of the railway line to enable the truck to cross.

Despite the effort, the truck still got stuck on the railway lines. They then tilted the head of the truck and left the area without leaving any warning for trains that use the railway.

She told the court, “Investigations have disclosed that there is no access route across the railway tracks to the Juapong road.

“Even if the truck had successfully crossed the railway, a big gutter and a stream to the west side of the railway lines would have prevented the accused persons from joining the Akuse-Juapong road.

“On the same day, the Management of Ghana Railways Company, led by the complainant and including 28 engineers from Ghana and Poland embarked on a test run of the new Diesel Multiple Unit (DMU) 001 Train from Tema to Mpakadan.”

The State Attorney told the court that the scheduled test run was announced ahead of time. However, when the train got to the Abortia area, it crashed into the truck, damaging it completely while parts of the train too were damaged.

“The train was sent to Tema for examination, while the scrap of the vehicle, which was damaged beyond repairs was taken to the Juapong police station for further action.”

Meanwhile, the truck driver who caused the train accident, Abel Dzidotor was sentenced to 6 months imprisonment with hard labour after he pleaded guilty to three of the four charges against him.