South African police have refuted Ghana’s foreign ministry’s assertions that the killing of a Ghanaian national in Cape Town was related to anti-immigrant protests on June 30. The police clarified that the incident is being treated as an extortion-motivated murder. The victim, identified as 35-year-old Mr. Kwabena Boagen, was fatally shot in Nyanga, with initial investigations pointing towards extortion as the likely motive.
The South African Police Service (SAPS) in the Western Cape revealed that the victim was gunned down at the Nyanga Terminus on Monday. The police statement highlighted that the crime scene reports suggest the involvement of yet-to-be-apprehended gunmen in an extortion scheme. The deceased was pronounced dead at the scene, prompting Nyanga detectives to launch a murder investigation and engage with the victim’s family to offer condolences and support.
Contrary to Ghana’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ claims linking the murder to the recent anti-immigrant protests in South Africa, SAPS emphasized that there is no connection between the killing and the nationwide demonstrations. The police urged for cooperation from the concerned authorities to provide details of the incident for further investigation. Additionally, they disputed any reference to a Khayelitsha murder case mentioned in the Ghanaian statement, emphasizing that no such record exists.
