President Nana Akufo-Addo has granted amnesty to 808 convict prisoners serving various terms including persons on death row.
The decision was taken upon the recommendation of the Prisons Service Council and in consultation with the Council of State.
This is in accordance with Article 72 (1) of the Constitution, the Director General of Prisons, Patrick Darko Missah said in a statement on Thursday.
The breakdown of convicts are:
- First offenders – 783
- Seriously ill – 11
- Inmates on death row to be commuted to life imprisonment – 7
- Inmates serving life sentence to have sentence commuted to 20 years definite term – 4
- Very old prisoners (70 years and above) – 3
According to the statement, the first offenders totalling 783 who have served half of their sentences, as well as 11 seriously ill prisoners, and three aged prisoners are to be released outright.
“However, seven/7 prisoners on death row would have their sentences commuted to life imprisonment; while four prisoners serving life sentence will be commuted to twenty/20 years definite term”.
Although there have been calls on the president to free some prisoners in the wake of the deadly Covid-19, as has been done in other countries, the statement did not make mention of the coronavirus.
Source: 3news.com | Ghana