Ghana arrests reputed leader of violent anti-gay gang

Police in Ghana have arrested a man whom LGBTI activists labeled as an anti-LGBTI criminal using social media to entrap and assault LGBTI people.

Ghana’s Daily Guide reported today that “Suspect Sulley Fuiseni, a 30-year-old leader of a group called Safety Empire, a gang that allegedly brutally assaulted a man suspected to be a gay in Nima, has finally been arrested.”

Fuseini, or Fuiseni, also uses the name “Achidundu,” the article reported. He was originally identified as Doya Dundu, which was a name he used on Facebook, along with the name Sulley Fuseini.  His supporters in the group Safety Empire also call him “RasDoya,” which means “Lord Doya.”

The group is active in the Nima district, a predominant Muslim community in Ghana’s capital, Accra.

Daily Guide reported that Fuseini was apprehended by plainclothes police working with the Nima Neighbourhood Watch Committee. The article said that Fuiseni had allegedly poured hot water on a young man in Nima on Tuesday night after escaping arrest for the past five weeks.

“His arrest has given a sort of relief to some residents of Nima after suffering brutalities and other attacks in the hands of the said terrorist group,” the Daily Guide stated.

He is now in the custody of the Accra Regional Police Command, which is helping with the investigation.

Police began a search for Fuseini after he allegedly led an assault on an allegedly gay man in Nima on Aug. 14. In that incident, which was videotaped, the man was stripped naked, then beaten with planks and sticks.

Some youths opposed Fuseini’s actions, which led to further violence.

On Sept. 4, according to the Daily Guide, Fuseini and his accomplices poured boiling water on a youth during a heated argument. With his face burned, the victim reported the incident at the Adabraka police station.

In August, a campaign by the Rev. Jide Macauley and his allies, reported on Aug. 15, resulted in the cancellation of Facebook pages that Fuseini allegedly  used to contact his victims, after which he would meet them, “strip them naked, assault them with sticks and leather, beat and humiliate them publicly and then post the video online,” Macauley said.

Macauley is the founder of the LGBTI-friendly House of Rainbow, with branches in Nigeria, Ghana and the United Kingdom.

“We need to keep this guy behind bars,” Macauley said. “Send a clear message that discrimination is unlawful and it is my hope that the Human Rights communities would help to support the victims of hate crime.”

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He expressed thanks to his colleagues in Ghana for their hard work on the issue. But more needs to be done, he said.

Macauley noted, “Sulley Fuseini still has a page on Facebook used to promote hatred and discrimination against LGBT people. His cover photo carries the name of his notorious evil gang ‘Safety Empire’ with message ‘Faya Burn Chi-chi Batty meaning ‘with fire we shall burn homosexuals.’

“There are also video of threats against gay people. Please help us report these photos and video individually to Facebook by clicking on the appropriate  Report button. Tell Facebook it is harassment and hate speech on the grounds of sexual orientation and gender identity.”