An Accra Circuit court has remanded into police custody five policemen who were arrested for allegedly robbing a businessman of GH¢20,000 at gunpoint.
The accused were identified as No.53857 G/Const. Wishwell Odoo, No.54250 G/Const. Lawal Agyapong, No.53860 G/Const. Evans Arawassi, No.52719 G/L/CPL. Redeemer Agama and No.55300.G/Const. Sena Kuvordo, all of National RDF attached to National Operations Combat 23 Team.
They have been charged with three counts of conspiracy to commit a crime namely robbery contrary to Sections 23 (1) and 149 of Criminal Offences Act 1960 (Act 29), robbery contrary to Section 149 of Criminal Offences Act 1960 (Act 29) and conspiracy to commit a crime to wit ‘Giving a bribe to influence public officer contrary to Sections 23 (1) and 252 (1) of the Criminal Offences Act 1960 (Act 29).
When the case was called today, accused persons pleaded not guilty to the charge and requested bail through their lawyers led by Andy Portia.
However, the prosecuting team led by ASP Evans Kesse objected to the bail application and explained to the court that the police needed time to do thorough work.
The court presided over by Her Honour Rosemary Baah Torsu dismissed the bail application and remanded the policemen into police custody until June 9.
Presenting the facts, ASP Kesse told the court that Mackeon Yeboah, the complainant, is a student and a businessman and lives at Ashalley Botwe.
He said on May 24, 2021, at about 2 am, the complainant was on board an Uber taxi around the UPSA area when accused persons who were on board Operation Calm Life Police Service vehicle with arms meant for night patrol duties, accosted him and forcibly accused the victim of being involved scamming.
The prosecutor said the policemen threatened the victim with harm and asked him to hand over to them any money he had on him.
“They seized the victim’s phone and drove with him from Madina to Awudome Cemetery at Kaneshie at night. They threatened to harm the victim should he fail to hand over to the cash of GH¢20,000.”
According to ASP Kesse, the policemen again threatened the victim with harm at gunpoint and asked him to transfer cash from his bank account through the online banking system into a mobile money account.
“The victim acting upon the instructions of the accused persons amidst the threat of harm transferred cash sum of GH¢20, 000 from his Ecobank account to a mobile number that was given to him.
“Having robbed the victim of his money, the accused person deleted the transaction records on his phone, sent him to the Kwame Nkrumah Interchange and called on a taxi driver where they forced him into it and asked the driver to drive on without looking back.”
The prosecution said a report was made to the police at Kaneshie District and a police investigation led to the arrest of the five serving police officers and cash exhibit of the GH¢20,000 retrieved from them.
He said after the arrest of accused persons, they bribed the investigator with GH¢2,500 to cover them up in the case.
Meanwhile, Achimota police are still on a manhunt for three other police officers who also attacked one Abdullai Ibrahim of Ashongman and also robbed him of an amount of GH¢18, 000.
In Abdullai case, he was driving his unregistered Mercedes Benz with trade plate number DV-2508 from Ashongman to the Legon Hospital around 11:23 pm and on reaching a section of the road in front of the Haatso Branch of Ecobank, off the Atomic-Madina road, the three policemen using a service vehicle stopped him and searched his car.
After the search, the policemen arrested him and accused him of being a cyber-fraudster known in local parlance as ‘Sakawa’.
A police report said that two of the policemen handcuffed the victim, seized his mobile phone, put him in his car and one of the policemen took over the steering wheel and escorted him to the Silver Star Towers-Airport and Okponglo respectively and at gunpoint forced him to withdraw a sum of GH¢18,000.00 from his Stanbic Bank account with ATM.
The policemen after receiving the money released the complainant’s car and his mobile phone to him and left.
By Linda Tenyah-Ayettey
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