By Ashiadey Dotse
President of the Ghana Academy of Forensic Sciences, Dr Pet-Paul Wepeba, says the site of the 6 August 2025 military helicopter crash that killed eight people should have been sealed off immediately to protect crucial evidence.
Speaking in an interview on TV3’s Keypoint show on Saturday, 9 August 2025, he explained that securing the scene was vital for aviation forensic experts to determine exactly how the crash happened — whether the aircraft broke up mid-air, exploded on impact, or collided with another object.
“The position of debris and other materials can give important clues,” he said, warning that some wreckage pieces were taken away by residents before investigators arrived.
Dr Wepeba noted that photographs of debris in their original positions would have allowed investigators to use scientific methods, such as Newton’s laws of motion, to reconstruct the incident. He revealed that some items, including a wristwatch, have since been returned, but moving objects has already made the work more difficult.
He also raised concerns over how the remains of the victims were handled. He said that without proper protective measures, people who came into contact with the bodies risked exposure to aviation fuel, hydraulic fluids and other hazardous substances. Poor handling, he warned, can also contaminate evidence and complicate identification, especially when body parts are scattered and later mixed together.
Dr Wepeba explained that some samples have been sent to South Africa for complex DNA analysis because the remains are highly fragmented and, in some cases, mixed. This, he said, requires matching DNA profiles with those of relatives to identify each victim accurately.
While acknowledging that villagers acted out of ignorance, he urged for a national public education campaign on how to respond to accident and crime scenes.
“If people understand the rules, we can protect evidence, maintain dignity for the dead and support faster investigations,” he said.
He added that every contact leaves a trace, and those traces can make all the difference in finding answers.
The crash occurred in the Adansi Akrofuom District in the Ashanti Region and claimed the lives of Defence Minister Dr Edward Kofi Omane Boamah, Minister for Environment, Science and Technology Dr Alhaji Murtala Mohammed, Acting Deputy National Security Coordinator Alhaji Muniru Mohammed, NDC Vice Chairman Dr Samuel Sarpong, former parliamentary candidate Mr Samuel Aboagye, Squadron Leader Peter Bafemi Anala, pilot Flying Officer Twum Ampadu and Sergeant Ernest Addo.
Dr Wepeba extended his condolences to the families of the victims, saying the loss touches the entire nation.
