Robbers terrorise Weija residents

Story: Albert K. Salia
RESIDENTS of Weija and its surrounding areas were for four days last week subjected to profound terror, brutalities and inhuman treatment by a group of armed robbers.
At the end of it however, two of the robbers were left dead, three others arrested, a number of residents injured and scores of others traumatised. The two were lynched by the residents.
Before the death of one of the robbers, Godwin Asamoah Yaw, alias Lord Kenya, believed to be the leader of the group, he mentioned some of his accomplices as Kwame Adjei, Christopher Gbetonyeku, Frederick Yaw Adjapong, alias Yaw Gap, and another he identified only as Emmanuel.
That led the police to arrest Christopher and Frederick, while Kweku Abeiku handed himself over to the Weija Police after Kojo Rasta, his accomplice in a mobile phone snatching incident, had been lynched.
A locally manufactured pistol was found on Lord Kenya.
Briefing newsmen in Accra yesterday, the Deputy Accra Regional Police Commander, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) K. A. Boateng, said following the persistent harassment of residents of Aplaku, Weija and Tetegu by armed robbers for the whole of last week, the attention of the police was drawn to the area.
He said the robbers did not just rob their victims but also inflicted wounds on them and raped some as well.
He said the robberies became intense between September 18 and 21, 2007 with at least two robberies per night.
According to him, the attention of the patrol team was drawn to a robbery incident in which five robbers were said to be terrorising the residents.
ACP Boateng said the patrol team pursued the robbers based on the information that the public gave them.
He said while the team was searching for the robbers, they had information that one of them had been lynched.
Fortunately, he said, the team managed to get names of the accomplices just before the robber Lord Kenya died.
ACP Boateng recalled that on September 18, 2007, the group had attacked a carpenter, Mr Idan Wilson Yao, 36, about 2:30 am in his residence.
He said during the robbery, they used a T-shirt of the victim to tie his hands, collected ¢7.5 million, a video deck and mobile phones from him.
Prior to that, he said, the robbers had a little party in the victim's house drinking beer, paper wine, Ogyam Bitters, milk and other drinks found in his fridge.
ACP Boateng said the robbers then moved to the house of another victim, Mrs Angela Annor, 50, inflicted knife wounds on her, collected £2,000, ¢1 million, a video camera and jewellery, including her wedding ring.
He said a tenant in the house of Mrs Annor, who was identified only as Ben, was also wounded.
He said the robbers abandoned the video deck they had stolen from Mr Yao's residence in Mrs Annor's house.
According to ACP Boateng, the group of robbers again attacked another victim, Mr Adams Ganu, on September 19, 2007 about 3am and tied his hands with his T-shirt.
The Deputy Regional Commander said the robbers then collected $3,000, ¢6 million, six mobile phones, a Toshiba laptop, a DVD player and six wrist watches from the victim's house.
He said about 2:30 am on September 20, 2007, the group attacked another family during which they clubbed, Mr Harrison Kofi Boateng, who had just returned from Italy the previous day.
According to him, the robbers took away ¢80 million, two decoders, six mobile phones and a black bag in which they put their booty and left.
ACP Boateng said Madam Rosemond Koranteng, wife of Mr Boateng, identified two of the suspects, including Kojo Rasta, when she went to report to the police while Mr Yao identified Frederick Yaw Adjapong.
He said Mrs Annor identified Lord Kenya as the person who inflicted the knife wounds on her.
ACP Boateng said at about 4:30am on September 21, 2007, Abeiku and Rasta snatched someone's mobile phone within the same vicinity.
He said the alarm raised by the victim led to the lynching of Kojo Rasta while Abeiku escaped.
He said Abeiku, however, later handed himself over to the police.
ACP Boateng said the police suspected that Abeiku and Rasta were part of the group that had been terrorising the residents in the area.
He said the police would mount an identification parade for victims to identify the suspects.
He assured the public that the police were there to serve them and should, therefore, pass on information on the activities of criminals to them.
ACP Boateng appealed to communities to form neighbourhood watch committees to complement the efforts of the police in fighting crime.