12th October, 2012
Thieves in Norway have escaped with the suitcase of King Otomfuo Osei Tutu II, the Asantehene of Ashanti Kingdom of Ghana.
The problem is that the suitcase did not just contain boutique clothes or shoes, but what has been decribed as ‘crown jewels’.
Ghana’s Ashanti Kingdom and its Asantehene have a long history and it means the stolen crown jewels must be historical treasures indeed.
“On Wednesday around 1:00 pm, a suitcase belonging to the king of Ghana was stolen in the lobby of a hotel (the Radisson Blue Plaza)”, Inspector Marius Erlandssen in charge of the investigation, told AFP.
The suitcase was at the top of the pile of luggage belonging to the Ashanti sovereign and his entourage when it was taken, he added.
“His personal belongings have great value to him … (above all) sentimental value since they have been in his family for a long time,” Erlandsssen said, while declining to confirm press reports that the luggage contained jewellery.
However the tabloid Verdens Gang quoted the king’s secretary, Kofi Owusu Boateng, as saying, “Anyone who carries something of great personal value with them realises that it is a great loss if it’s stolen.
“And for those who know our tradition, it is clear that these crown jewels have a tremendous value.”
Ghana’s embassy in Copenhagen, which is also accredited in Norway, told AFP that Norwegian press reports that the suitcase contained jewellery were correct, but declined to comment further.
“We have video footage of a man leaving (the hotel) with the suitcase. We are working on identifying him. There might be other people involved,” Erlandssen said.
King Otomfuo Osei Tutu II is in Oslo to attend a conference organised by the Norwegian-African Business Association on Friday. He arrived in the Norwegian capital on Wednesday and is scheduled to leave on Saturday.
The Ashanti monarch, one of Ghana’s most traditional tribal leaders, is one of the country’s most revered figureheads and the government regularly consults with him. Ghana became a republic in 1960, three years after gaining independence.
The king was born on 6 May 1950, and named Barima Kwaku Dua, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, he is the youngest of the five children of Nana Afua Kobi Serwaa Ampem, II, Asantehemaa (Queen mother of Asante)
He was educated at Institute of Professional Studies(IPS) after his O-Level at Osei Kyeretwie College in Ghana and later at the Polytechnic of North London, now London Metropolitan University, from where he also received an honorary degree of Doctor of Philosophy, conferred at a ceremony at The Barbican Centre, London on 11 January 2006.