Major Mahama died of head injuries – Pathologist

Specialist Pathologist Dr Lawrence Edusei, who conducted a postmortem on the body of Major Maxwell Mahama, has told an Accra High Court that multiple head injuries caused the death of the military officer.

His observation also included bleeding in the brain and lungs of Mr Mahama who met his death on 29 May 2017 at Denkyira Obuasi, Central Region, where he had been deployed to fight illegal mining activities.

The military officer was lynched by residents who said they thought he was an armed robber after they sighted his sidearm while he went on an early morning jogging routine.

“In my opinion, the cause of death is multiple head injuries; this is due to blunt objects like stone, wood, iron rods and shotguns. These are unnatural causes,” Dr Edusei told the court on Tuesday, 19 November 2019, adding: “In the chest cavity at the left side, there was a collection of blood, a round pellet was retrieved from the left cavity. There was extensive bleeding in the left upper part of the abdomen”.

In his account of how the body of Major Mahama was mutilated, Dr Edusei said his examination revealed: “burns involving the head, both upper limbs, both lower limbs, the abdomen, so, in total, about 54% of total body surface area burnt,”.

According to him, “There were multiple lacerations on the skull, the left side of the lower limb” as well as “depressed fracture of the skull, fracture of the jaw bone, chest bones (ribs), extensive bleeding under the skin of the head,” on an otherwise “well-nourished male adult.”

An earlier X-ray scan conducted on the remains showed pellets stuck at the left side of the military officer’s jaw, the lower end of the right thigh bone and the lower part of the left leg.

The pathologist also reported of a fracture to the right side of the pelvic bone caused by an item difficult to determine but suggested it was most likely from a gun.

Meanwhile, 14 suspects are standing trial for the murder of the military officer.

They include William Baah, the Assemblyman for the area at the time of the incident.

To mark the second anniversary of Major Mahama’s death, the government unveiled a 20-foot monument in his honour at the Airport Hills Roundabout. A fund was also set up by the government of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) with seed money from President Nana Akufo-Addo to cater for the late officer’s widow and two children.