A 64-year-old man in Kotei has been arrested after allegedly attacking a nine-year-old boy with a cutlass, severing his wrist, during a confrontation over sugarcane.
The man, identified as Robert Quaicoe, is accused of using a cutlass to slash the wrist of nine-year-old Kelvin Oppong, who had reportedly entered the farm with friends to harvest sugarcane.
According to eyewitnesses, the boys were seen on Quaicoe’s farm on July 29. When the farmer confronted them, most of the children fled. But he managed to catch Kelvin and, in a fit of rage, allegedly slashed his left wrist with the blade.
The child’s father, Francis Adu, told police he rushed to the scene after learning of the incident and found his son bleeding from a deep wound.
He immediately took the boy for medical treatment and then reported the matter to the KNUST District Police. Quaicoe was arrested shortly after.
Police say they are still trying to locate the other children involved to help with their investigations. It is unclear whether the boys were attempting to steal the sugarcane or simply playing in the area, but the case has raised concerns about the use of violence against minors.
Kelvin remains in hospital as doctors assess the extent of his injury and whether his hand can be saved.
