The brother of Asamoah Gyan, Ghana national team captain, has been arrested for allegedly leading a group of men in the brutal beating of a Ghanaian journalist. The reason for the alleged attack? The reporter had asked Gyan about rumors that he had a missing rapper ritually sacrificed. Wait, what?!?
Okay, let's take a step back. Earlier this summer, Castro—real name Theophilus Tagoe—and his girlfriend were reported missing while on a vacation with their old friends, the Gyan brothers. The last time they were seen by anyone, they had taken out a jet ski. After a long search for the bodies, police declared the two dead and suspected they had accidentally drowned.
Things didn't end there, at least in the public imagination. Reverend Ebenezer Adarkwah Yiadom, who refers to himself as a prophet and leads a popular church that broadcasts televised services, started hinting that he knew more about the death of Castro. All he would say publicly was that he had more information about the alleged disappearance but that he wouldn't divulge any more until Castro's family came to him for guidance first.
None of that stopped the rumor mill from running on overdrive. From what we can determine, the working theory was that Gyan had orchestrated the ritual sacrificing of Castro—again, a close friend—apparently for some black magic purposes, possibly for a financial benefit. That version pretty much makes no sense, but they caught on nonetheless, even to the point where there were public calls for the arrest of the two Gyans and the Reverend so that police could get to the bottom of the story.
That theory appears to be what Daniel Kenu, the beaten journalist, was getting at in a question to Gyan during a press conference ahead of Ghana's African Cup of Nations qualifier last week. One headline reporting on the press conference read "Did You Sacrifice Castro For Riches? - Journalist Ask Asamoah Gyan." Here's how WorldSoccer described the scene:
Kenu is reported to have said: "This will not be in a good taste…It has nothing to do with the upcoming match but I wish to appeal to Asamoah Gyan to clear the air.. There is this allegation that you sacrificed Castro for whatever reason…………"
The Ghana FA told Gyan to ignore the question but a furious Gyan had to be restrained after he tried to confront the reporter.
It was a couple days later, when Kenu was picking up a press pass for the Ghana-Uganda match, that he was allegedly attacked by Gyan's brother Baffour and a handful of other men. Here's how the Daily Graphic, Kenu's paper, described the aftermath.
Before he could reciprocate the gesture, Baffour butted in Ga, literally translated 'paddy, what sort of stupid question did you ask my brother,' and before Mr Kenu could respond, he followed with a hefty slap.
It was a hellish moment for Mr. Kenu as Baffour and his machomen launched series of hefty punches on him, while Addo pretended as a peacemaker restraining Mr. Kenu's assailants.
But for the intervention of one Stephen Asante, a reporter at the Ghana News Agency, who prevented the thugs from smashing Mr Kenu's Sumsung tablet on the ground and causing further harms to his body, a fatal incident would have been recorded.
There's basically no chance these rumors are in any way true, and on one hand it's easy to understand why Asamoah Gyan would be so upset at having a reporter confront him about this before a soccer match. On the other, beating the reporter within an inch of his life is...not the way to handle it. In any case, this is about the craziest story ever.