Last month, there were several robbery cases mostly in the national capital, creating uneasiness among Ghanaians.

The Vice President however said initiatives taken by government to address the security threat, are yielding positive results.

[contextly_sidebar id=”BTo35SObAq37EZo6Nd1NmVkOJPMFyuL1″]“With the recent increase in armed robberies that happened, you saw government moved very quickly to try to address the situation with an enhanced Operation ‘Calm Life’. Ultimately, we are seeing a reduction especially in the urban areas of that type of armed robbery so from the broader point of view government is doing something about it” he noted.

Speaking at a youth entrepreneurial forum in Accra, Dr. Bawumia further stated that government will ensure that businesses are protected from robbery attacks.

The first quarter of the year has seen a number of armed robbery incidents, some of which have been carried out in  forex bureaus.

A few weeks ago, two persons were reported to have sustained gunshot wounds from suspected robbers who appeared to be in a fleeing crime scene.

In that same week, some armed men stormed Royal Motors, an automobile company in Accra, making away with the company’s sales, while a Lebanese national of Delta Agro, a plastics manufacturing firm in Tema, was also shot dead by robbers and his Ghc200, 000 stolen after he had withdrawn the money from a bank in the Tema Heavy Industrial area to pay workers.

There have also been several complaints from Ghanaians in other parts of the country who say armed robbers have been terrorizing them without any help from the police.

These series of attacks triggered calls from the Minority and some Ghanaians for the IGP to be sacked for failing to protect the citizenry.

The Police administration responded to these calls with a major reshuffle which saw the Director General of Police Operations, George Akuffo Dampare, being reassigned to head the Research and Planning Department, while nine others were also reassigned to take up various positions across the country.

Government also revamped the already existing ‘Operation Calm Life’ initiative comprising police officers and military personnel, aimed at combating criminal activities across the country.

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By: Marian Ansah & Sammy Wiafe/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @EfeAnsah

The post We’ve reduced armed robbery attacks – Bawumia appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

According to the Marine Police Command, the trafficking ring, who were coming from Ada in the Greater Accra Region, were on board an artisanal fishing boat heading to Conakry when they were busted by the patrol team.

[contextly_sidebar id=”vV6oogblkYsayTEDGcHnKub8CECFNPOd”]The Director in charge of the Marine Police Unit, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Seidu Iddi, confirmed the arrest when he briefed the media in Takoradi in the Western Region.

He explained that because the Marine Unit could not immediately move the suspects from the high seas to the shore during the arrest, they had to fall on the Takoradi Port to assist them with a bigger boat to aid the movement of the 51 and their boat from the high seas to the Takoradi Port anchorage.

ACP Seidu Iddi said the preliminary investigations carried out by the command suggest the traffickers were carrying along equipment suspected of being used in small-scale and illegal mining expedition.

He, however, could not readily mention the type of equipment that was on board the vessel, except to indicate that subsequent investigations would unravel the facts.

He said the command would ascertain those facilitating the traffickers’ movement from Ghana to Guinea.

At the moment, he said all the 51 would be detained pending court action.

He said they are being dispatched to the various police stations ahead of prosecution due to the smaller nature of the Marine Police.

Established in 2014, the Marine Police Unit has been in charge of patrolling the territorial waters of the country.

Monday’s arrest, the command noted, was part of the usual patrol carried out by the command.

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Source: The Finder

The post Police foil trafficking of 51 Ghanaians to Guinea appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The Ghana Police Service has often ranked top of corruption perception lists in the country, with many Ghanaians often expressing their belief that police officers are corrupt.

However, speaking on Point Blank on Eyewitness News, Mr. Quantson believes that the public cannot be completely absolved of blame in the perception of corruption within the Police Service.

According to him, citizens create an enabling environment for police officers to be corrupt by continuously offering bribes to them whenever they commit crimes.

“Who polices the police? It’s the people. So, if the people have wrong attitudes, how are they going to police the police to make them efficient and competent. Often, when I hear that the police are corrupt, I laugh. The police can only be corrupt in a corrupt environment. If the society isn’t corrupt there’s no way the Police can be corrupt. I’m not saying the Police aren’t corrupt but who gives them the [bribes]?” he asked.

“There’s a question of attitudes; if the attitude is wrong on the part of the citizens, the police will get it wrong as well. Elsewhere in the world, if the Police stop you and ask for your license, your first reaction is not to put money in the wallet and give it to the police. The public is part of part of the corruptible system and it’s not just the police, customs, immigration; wherever services are rendered and people haven’t got the right attitudes of resisting criminalities, they become the pushers.”

He added that Ghanaians who give bribes to the police to escape punishment for even the minor offences have no moral right to complain about corruption within the police service when they continue to perpetuate the crimes.

“If the public is policing the police and exposing corruption in the system, they will be inconvenienced. The public attitude must be paramount not to enhance corruption and the Police will abide. If you give in meekly, they will be emboldened to frustrate you.”

The prevalence of corruption in the country has come under the spotlight in recent days following the release of the Corruption Perception Index which indicated that Ghana had dropped 11 places from he 2016 ranking to place 81 out of 180 countries in the 2017 report.

The Index, put together by Transparency International ranks countries annually by their perceived levels of corruption as determined by expert assessments and opinion surveys.
Ghana’s mark out of a total of hundred was 40 down from 43, which the country attained in the last index.

‘Wrong mindset’

Mr. Quatson also attributed the failure to completely root out corruption in the Ghanaian society to the attitudes of the general populace to criminality.

According to him, corruption can only persist if there’s unwillingness from the people within the society to address criminality within their communities.

He stated that despite the number of successes that have been chalked in the fight against corruption, completely eradicating it from the society requires a change in the mindsets of Ghanaians towards criminality.

“Some progress has been achieved but there’s still a lot to be done. It’s rooted in the attitudes of the people towards crime. If the people’s attitudes are wrong about crime and they think that criminality pays, no matter what you do they won’t love you. The best scenario is when you have majority of the people in the country being law-abiding, that way there’ll be a small number who aren’t law-abiding so the law enforcement agencies can deal with them,” he said on Eyewitness News.

“When majority of people are involved in criminality, there’s a problem for law enforcement. The crucial help you should get from the people doesn’t come. Fighting criminality is a question of intelligence and that comes from people. So, if the people’s attitudes are wrong about criminality, you won’t get the information you require.”

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By: citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post ‘Our society breeds corrupt police officers’ – K.B Quantson appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

His comment was in response to the recent attack at the Kwabenya District Police Headquarters which led to the killing of a police officer on duty and the freeing of seven inmates, three of whom have since been rearrested.

[contextly_sidebar id=”Xwx2F5CybUARhhdzJp3bxefKTgOfAzNT”]Following the incident, many have questioned the quality of the country’s security, as the police station in question lacked basic equipment such as Close Circuit Television (CCTV) cameras.

Aside this latest incident, several other police officers have also lost their lives over the years while in the line of duty.

Speaking on Citi FM’s News Analysis Programme, The Big Issue, Mr. Cudjoe attributed these incidents to logistical challenges, saying the situation has made it impossible for the Police Service to effectively provide security to Ghanaians.

“The Police Service is in such a decrepit state and I am appalled. I do not think we have a proper Police Service. We are suppose to have about 52,000 Police personnel but as we speak we have about 38,000 and this year, they only recruited 4,000. The armory the Police Service has are Second World War type armory,” he said.

Apart from the logistical challenges, Mr. Cudjoe pointed out that another factor that had contributed to the Service’s inefficacy is the unfair treatment of police officers over the years, particularly in relation to remuneration.

“We do not have to belabour the point that the Police Service has not been treated properly. The welfare of the Police is a serious matter. As we speak only 6,200 of them are properly accommodated out of the 38,000 and over so clearly we do not have a service that is befitting to even take care of themselves.”

There have been several robbery incidents in many parts of the country, with constant reports of political vigilantism, over a year after the New Patriotic Party [NPP] came into office.

From 2016 to January 2018, 17 police officers have lost their lives in their line of duty. The total number of police deaths from 2013 to date, is 48.

Alleged NPP thugs ransack Wa MCE’s residence

Between December 2016 and 2017, Citi News recorded over 20 separate cases of political party violence.

A few days ago, some thugs believed to be aligned to the governing New Patriotic Party(NPP) in the Wa municipality of the Upper West Region, ransacked and vandalized the private residence of the Municipal Chief Executive of the area, Issahaku Moomin Tahiru.

The rampaging youth also vandalized the family house of the MCE and two other houses belonging to his supporters.

‘An isolated incident’

On Tuesday, the Information Minister, Mustapha Hamid assured that persons involved in the Kwabenya incident will be arrested to face the law.

“First of all, government condemns the criminal conduct of these elements in the strongest possible terms. There is a manhunt for these criminal elements and we have no doubts in our minds that they will be brought to face justice.

“While this is one of the isolated incidents that have unsettled the Ghanaian population, we wish to continue to assure the Ghanaian people that the security agencies are working to ensure the general safety of the population. The preventive mechanism of the Police Service remains intact which helps to nip such occurrences in the bud before they become full blown criminal activities.”

‘Ghana remains secure’

The Interior Minister also assured that government had not lost control over the security situation in the country despite the recent attacks.

“There are challenges with our security and we will deal with it. Has government lost control over security ?No. Can we do better? Yes…And we are going to work together to deal with the issue” he said.

Mr. Dery said government will apprehend suspects involved in the Kwabenya incident, saying “the Police are on top of it. They are investigating it. They are making progress. We believe we will get back the people who have perpetrated it and we will deal with it.”

“I believe we need to confront the situation. How can we make it better. We have to work together and see how several ministries can come together. We need to deal with it. We have to get a sustainable way of dealing with it,” he added.

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By: Marian Ansah/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @EfeAnsah

The post Police too under-resourced to provide adequate security – IMANI Boss appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Speaking to Citi News, Manhyia Divisional Police Commander, ASP Kwaku Buah, said the suspect is in their custody, and they [Police] are open to more information from other victims.

[contextly_sidebar id=”dytpjpT7xhUBIiRjnhp6RLg9WcFm6ROG”]“He has been remanded to reappear before the court on 5^th February 2018. He appeared before Asokore Mampong District Magistrate.The man is in custody as I talk to you now, we still have the number 8, we are waiting for other victims to come to the police station and help us dig deeper if indeed he has defrauded other people of various sums of money,” he said

The suspect, only know as Jerry, was apprehended last week when he posed as a Deputy Superintendent of Police.

‘Police warn’

The Police administration had to contend with suspicions of fraud pertaining to recruitment in the past.

An unidentified person impersonated some senior police officers in the Ghana Police Service in September, 2017.

A statement from the police noted that, the former Director-General of the CID, COP Bright Oduro, and the Deputy Upper West Commissioner, DCOP Oduro Kwarteng as the officers in question being impersonated.

The fraudster claimed he could influence the transfer of police officers to places like the UN to participate in peacekeeping missions.

In April 2017, a screen printer who collected GH¢8,000.00 from a reverend minister under the pretext of enlisting him into the Ghana Police Service or the Ghana Armed Forces, was convicted to a fine of GH¢3, 600.00.

‘Timbilla fired’

After two years of investigations into a botched police recruitment scam in 2015, a former Director-General in-charge of Human Resource at the Ghana Police Service, COP Patrick Timbilla, was fired for his alleged role in the scandal.

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By: Farida Abernie Ola Yusif/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Fake policeman in court over recruitment scam appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The five, who were accused of playing various roles in the alleged gold scam were interdicted in March 2017.

[contextly_sidebar id=”EyKAb53FnZ8LoDgPgH6hGoDMHnfMABOq”]An American company, Green Global Resources, accused  DSP Basintale and four other officers of conspiring to steal some 13 gold bars from them.

Among the reliefs being sought by the officers, which have been sighted by Citi News, the five want the Inspector General of Police to revoke their interdiction if no disciplinary proceedings have been instituted against them.

They also want a declaration that no disciplinary proceedings were instituted against the applicants more that three months after their interdiction.

In addition, the five are seeking an order barring the police from conducting any more disciplinary proceedings against them.

They maintain that the IGP does not have the legal authority to extend the statutory three-month period within which to institute disciplinary proceedings. They contend that this would amount to abuse of office.

When they first threatened legal action, the five had previously held that the Ghana Police Service was perpetuating an illegality by purporting to hold a service enquiry in flagrant violation of C.I  76.

This gold scam case led to the interdiction of DSP Emmanuel Basintale, and four others, after they allegedly seized 13 gold bars from the firm under the pretext that they bought stolen gold. The group was believed to have been led by DSP Basintale.

The officers insisted they did not engage in any criminality “by any stretch of the legal and factual imagination.”

Meanwhile, the Police has told Citi News they have received the writ and are prepared to meet the five in court.

The Police Director Public Affairs, DSP Sheila Abayie Buckman, said at the moment, the police “want to uphold every legal principle, including the principle of subjudice such that, for any matter under judicial consideration, we will not be able to comment on it.”

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By: Franklin Badu Jnr/Delali Adogla-Bessa/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Basintale, others sue Police Service over GHc1.3m gold scam appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

According to the network, data sharing between the ECOWAS countries will help them effectively deal with notorious criminals who carry out their operations across the borders.

This comes after the arrest of the notorious Nigerian kidnapper in Nigeria, who revealed he had properties in Ghana and holds a Ghanaian passport.

The suspect, Chikwudubem Onwuamadike, who also uses Evans, was nabbed June 10, 2017 at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport while he was about to leave the country.

The arrest has generated a lot of talk about crimes committed across borders and how security agencies in the sub-region collaborate to address them.

Speaking to the media on the development, the Executive Director of WANEP, Chukwuemeka Eze, said the implementation of the ECOWAS Biometric ID by Sub-Regional leaders will go a long way in fighting crime.

“We need to have a situation where a crime in Ghana is a crime in Nigeria, and therefore we have a community in dealing with crime and criminality. It is important to see the wisdom in the ECOWAS biometric identity card which means that every citizen of the community identity will be centralized so that if you are coming into Ghana, it should be possible for Ghanaian authorities to know where you are coming from, and who you are, and vice versa,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Inspector General for the Nigeria Police Service, Ibrahim Kpotun Idris, has said the arrest reveals the urgent need for bilateral intelligence sharing between countries.

He also urged Ghana’s security agencies to closely monitor the wife and other family members of the suspect who are currently in Ghana to ensure that a comprehensive investigation is carried out, and other accomplices brought to book.

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By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post WANEP calls for collaboration in cross-border crime fight appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

He will now serve as the Commander of the East Legon District Command.

His deputy, DSP Sheila Abayie Buckman, will replace him as the new Director of Public Affairs.

Meanwhile, ACP David Oklu, has also been appointed as the Director General, Public Relations.

SP Cephas Arthur previously served as the Deputy Director of Public Affairs under SP Kwesi Ofori.

In 2011, he was promoted to head the Public Affairs Directorate when SP Kwesi Ofori was reassigned to the Tafo Pankrono Police station in the Ashanti Region.

Having served more than 6 years in that capacity, SP Cephas Arthur becomes one of the longest serving Public Affairs Directors in the service.

A memo signed by the Inspect General of Police, David Asante Apeatu, and sighted by citifmonline.com, indicated that a total of 38 senior police officers have been reassigned in the latest exercise.

Which Commander left the East Legon District Command?

It would be recalled that the former Commander of the East Legon District Command, DSP Emmanuel Basintale, was interdicted after he was caught in a gold scam.

He was arrested with four civilians over their alleged fraudulent gold deals running into several millions of Ghana cedis.

His arrest followed intensive investigations by the CID from 2016.

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By: Franklin Badu/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Supt. Cephas Arthur transferred to East Legon in latest Police reshuffle appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP), David Nenyi Ampiah-Bennin, Central Regional Police Commander gave the admonition at the inauguration of a new Police station at Assin Nyankomasi in the Assin Central Municipality of the central Region.

The edifice, which comprised; a charge office, station master’s office, male cell and place of convenience was financed by community members, benevolent individuals, and corporate bodies.

DCOP Ampiah-Bennin said the poor corporate image was a serious de-motivation and had a lingering demoralizing effect on hard working personnel who ensured that the nation enjoyed a modicum of peace and security.

He admonished the officers who would be posted to the new station to maintain high moral ethics, exhibit a high level of professionalism, dedication with the commitment to duty for the public to have confidence in them.

DCOP Ampiah-Bennin further advised police officers to be civil, firm and level-headed in the discharge of their mandated duties, saying “you must disengage from bad deeds that will mar the reputation and soil the integrity of the noble profession.”

The Regional Commander also advised the people to be law abiding because it was the surest way to peace and rapid development in the area.

He said “the strong presence of the police in any community helped to substantially reduce crime rate” and warned all miscreants who attacked police stations at the least provocation to desist from such acts or be ready to face them.

He appealed to the people to assist the police in providing maximum security and protection of lives and property by volunteering information on criminal’s hideouts.

The Police Commander, commanded the chief, people and their benefactors for building the police station and urged corporate institutions and other communities without police posts to emulate them.

Nana Kwesi Ansah, Chief of the community thanked the Police Service for accepting the offer to build a police station in the town and pledged to collaborate with them to reduce crime in the area.

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Source: GNA

The post Protect the integrity of the Police service – Officers urged appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The suspect, who was sent by his employer, a trader at Ofankor Timber Market, to deposit the amount into his bank account, bolted with it and has since gone missing.

The Amasaman District Magistrate court has since issued a warrant for his arrest.

Patrick, 5 feet 2 inches tall, is dark in complexion and stoutly built.

He has medium eyes and small ears.

The suspect was last seen in an ash T-shirt over a white pair of trousers at Timber Market on May 11, 2017,

He is suspected to be hiding in either Koforidua, Kumasi, Cape Coast or Accra.

A statement signed by Director of Public Affairs of the Police Service, Supt. Cephas Arthur urged anyone with information on the suspect’s whereabouts to report to the Achimota Mile 7 Police or the nearest Police station for a “handsome reward”.

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By: citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post 25-year-old wanted by Police over GHs30,000 theft appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.