Ruth Eshun: Slain Ghanaian nurse to be buried Saturday

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Ruth Ama Eshun, the community health nurse who was gruesomely murdered by unknown assailants earlier this month, will be laid to rest Saturday.

The lifeless body of the 37-year-old, was found on Tuesday, February 4, 2020.

A service will be held Saturday at Sewua in the Bosomtwe District of the Ashanti Region at the Jehovah’s Witnesses Kingdom Hall, where the deceased worshipped.

The religious organisation which has described the deceased as God-fearing said the sudden death of their member is a terrible loss.

The leadership of the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives’ Association has also been informed of the development.

Many dignitaries, including appointees in government, are expected to pay their last respect for the murdered health worker.

The former staff of the Sewua Health Center, left behind a husband and three children.

#JusticeForRuthEshun: What we know so far

On Tuesday, February 4, 2020, the body of Ruth Ama Eshun, a 37-year-old Ghanaian nurse was found at Ayuom near Kumasi in the Bosomtwe District of the Ashanti Region.

One person who was arrested in connection with the incident has since been remanded.

Here is what we know so far about the incident:

What happened?

The lifeless body of the deceased was found in the morning of Tuesday, February 4, 2020 after she failed to return home Monday and was reported missing by her worried husband.

The deceased, who worked at the Sewua Health Center — about half-an-hour drive from Ghana’s biggest natural lake Bosomtwe — was found at about 100 meters from her home.

She reportedly parted ways with her colleagues for the bank after an assignment until she met her untimely death.

Though there were reports of marks of assault on her body, family members have disputed such claims except to say that blood was oozing from her openings.

An autopsy report is expected to be submitted to the family in due course.

Who are the attackers?

It still remains unclear about the identities of the assailants.

Residents who trooped to the crime scene told dailymailgh that the deceased may have been gang-raped and murdered by the unknown assailants.

Dailymailgh however gathers that the key suspect has been on police wanted list in connection with several rape-murder cases in the Ashanti Region.

When dailymailgh visited, the crime scene had already been set ablaze by some unknown persons who may be linked to the incident.

What are Ghanaians saying?

Many Ghanaians have since taken to social media to demand expedited actions from police.

A campaign dubbed, “#JusticeForRuthEshun” has been launched to pile pressure on the police to bring perpetrators to book.

Some also questioned the priorities of Ghanaians in the wake of the death as they expressed a lack of faith in the justice system.

A Facebook user is backing calls for nurses across Ghana to declare an industrial action in solidarity with their departed colleague.

What have authorities said about the incident?

Public Relations Officer of the Ghana Police Service, Sheila A Buckman said the one person has since been remanded in connection with the incident.

Other reports suggest that a court order has been secured to search call records of the suspect whose phone was retrieved from the crime scene.

“So far the one person who was arrested has since been remanded into custody. We have also invited many others, including her [Ruth Eshun’s] husband for questioning”, the Police Spokesperson told an Accra-based TV Channel.

The cause of her death is still not known as the police will not give any further details on the development.

The development has also caught the attention of Ghana’s Parliament as lawmakers push for the Speaker of the House to invite the Minister for the Interior and the Inspector General of Police to update the house on the security situation in the Ashanti Region.

By Jonathan Ofori, Daily Mail GH