Student Arrested with Locally Manufactured Pistol at Osei Kyeretwie SHS

A male boarding student at Osei Kyeretwie Senior High School (OKESS) in Kumasi has been arrested after a locally manufactured pistol was discovered in his possession, sparking renewed concerns over the growing trend of weapons being brought into second-cycle institutions.

The suspect, whose identity is being withheld due to his age, is currently in police custody as investigations continue into how he acquired the weapon and what his intentions were.

This alarming development comes barely a month after a similar incident at Adventist Senior High School in Bantama, where a female student was accidentally shot in the eye by a male colleague wielding a similar locally manufactured weapon. That case prompted widespread outrage and calls for increased security in schools.

Education stakeholders and parents are expressing growing concern over the presence of illegal firearms on school campuses. Authorities have since intensified efforts to curb such incidents by enhancing school security protocols and engaging students in educational campaigns about the dangers of weapons.

The Ashanti Regional Police Command has assured the public that it is treating the matter with urgency and will collaborate with school authorities to prevent further incidents.

Meanwhile, the Ghana Education Service (GES) has reiterated its zero-tolerance policy on weapons in schools and is expected to issue a formal statement on the latest case.