Zuarungu SHS Student on the Run Days After Stealing Police Officer's Ammo During Riot

• A Zuarungu Senior High School student is on the run after escaping from police custody following riots at the school
• A committee has been established to investigate the recent riots, with 26 students reportedly shortlisted for questioning
• A mobile phone theft was said to have ignited violence between Frafra and Kusasi students, leading to police intervention

A Zuarungu Senior High School student is on the run after escaping from police custody with ammunition after recent unrest at the school.

The student had been arrested after trying to wrest a gun from a police officer during riots at the Bolgatanga East district school on July 20.

Zuarungu SHS was shut down following the riots caused by an alleged mobile phone theft that escalated into ethnic clashes between Frafra and Kusasi students.

This confrontation led to retaliatory attacks on shops in the school premises that saw some property torched.

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Zuarungu SHS student escapes police custody

In an interview with YEN.com.gh, Upper East Regional Minister Donatus Atanga Akamugri said the suspect student tried to forcibly take a police officer's rifle from a service pickup truck, was arrested on the night of July 19, 2025.

However, he was not handcuffed and managed to escape with a magazine from the police officer's gun and is currently at large. The minister noted that the student has not returned home since the school closure.

Akamugri described the fleeing student as a 'hardened criminal', emphasising that anyone who would struggle with a police officer for a firearm must be seriously troubled.

He confirmed that the student has been identified, and the police have contacted his parents, assigning them the task of locating him to appear before a committee for interrogation.

The regional minister said one student sustained serious injuries to the head from a cutlass attack during the riot. The police are investigating to identify the assailant involved in this violent act.

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Over 20 Zuarungu students investigated over riot

The school authorities have shortlisted 26 students for investigation following the violence, comprising three second-year students and 23 final-year students.

Akamugri, who also serves as the head of the Regional Security Council, also instructed the Upper East Regional Director of Education, Alice Abeere-inga, and the Bolgatanga East District Director of Education to establish a committee to investigate and identify those involved in the riots.

He emphasised the need to complete this committee's formation by July 23, 2025, and to conclude the investigation within two days.

The minister also stressed the urgency of reopening the school to allow students to prepare for the upcoming examination.

"We are giving them until this weekend to complete their investigation and provide a timeline for reopening the school to resume academic activities."

Ofoase Kokoben SHS students demonstrate

YEN.com.gh also reported that some students of Ofoase Kokoben SHS had registered their displeasure over how the institution is being managed with a protest in February.

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According to the students, the headmistress of the school, Juliet Amankwaah Kessewaah, has shown that she lacked the needed skills to effectively manage affairs at the school.

Proofreading by Bruce Douglas, copy editor at YEN.com.gh.

Source: YEN.com.gh