Four students at the Accra Academy Senior High School were on Monday arraigned at the Dansoman Circuit Court over an alleged assault of their junior colleagues in form one.

The students were seen in a viral video on social media assaulting one of the victims with a machete.

Among the four arraigned, only Richard Ninson, 21, is an adult. He was, however, not present in court.

Ninson was charged with two counts of abetment of crime to wit assault.

The other three, aged between 15 and 17, are minors and their names are, therefore, withheld. The three were present in court.

They pleaded not guilty to the charges of threat of harm, abetment of crime, and assault.

Justice Halimah El-Alawa Abdul-Basit, presiding, and in exercising her discretion, released the three on bail into the custody of their relatives – father, uncle and aunty – who were to stand as sureties under the Juvenile Justice Act.

Each was granted a GH₵10,000 bail. Their release was to enable them to prepare for their upcoming examinations.

Meanwhile the court has ordered prosecution to file its disclosures and witness statements for Case Management Conference.

The matter has been adjourned to April 14, 2025.

Prosecuting, Inspector Esther Mensah, led by Chief Inspector Portia Nuarko, told the court that the complainant was a 34-year-old tutor at the Accra Academy SHS.

The complainant resides at Ablekuma New Town.

The court heard that the accused persons were all day students residing at Mamprobi and Shukura in Accra.

On January 1, 2025, the school authority intercepted a video circulating on social media suggesting that the four students had assaulted some form one students on the school compound using a machete.

Prosecution said the complainant, together with the aunty of one of the minors, took him to the police for questioning.

His caution statement was taken and was released on bail while investigations continued.

The court heard that during investigations, it was revealed that on January 17, 2025, the victims (form one students) went to the school Park to pray, and the four accused persons approached them.

The prosecution said the accused persons ordered the victims to kneel and one of them (victim), holding a phone, was asked to delete all that was on his phone and hand it over to the accused.

The victim was further asked to pay GH₵500 if he wanted his phone back.

All the other victims were asked to contribute GH₵10 each which they did.

Prosecution said one of the accused hit the victim’s chest and used the machete to beat him while another accused person record the incident.

The accused threatened the victims not to reveal their ordeal to anyone else they would harm them.