Police round up criminal gangs

Page 31: Daily Graphic, February 16, 2010.
Story: Albert K. Salia
THE police at the weekend busted three suspected criminal gangs in various parts of the country.
Eight suspects were rounded up in the exercise at Kpando in the Volta Region and Haatso and Kotobabi in Accra.
Three suspects were arrested in Kpando last Friday for allegedly dealing in the illegal manufacture of pistols and supplying them to armed robbers, while three others were arrested at the Tentacles Hotel in Accra where they had gone to rob someone of a laptop.
Two others were arrested for allegedly attempting to snatch a taxi from its driver at Haatso.
A number of items, including locally made pistols, toy pistols, kitchen knives, machetes, mobile phones and two laptops, were retrieved from the suspects after their arrest.
Those arrested in the Kpando exercise were Daniel Asamany, 40, the manufacturer, and his two apprentices, Francis Abotsi, 25, and Victor Asuo, 34, while those arrested in the attempted hotel robbery were Isaac Arthur, 23; Frederick Harrison, 22, and Francis Osei Appiah, 20.
The others — Abraham Sarpong, 24, and Kwabena Fosu, 21 — were arrested in the attempted car-snatching incident at Haatso.
Briefing newsmen in Accra yesterday on the three exercises, the Accra Regional Police Commander, DCOP Rose Bio Atinga, assisted by her deputy, ACP Christian Tetteh Yohuno, said Isaac, Frederick and Francis, who robbed their victim of his laptop, had gone to the hotel about 2 a.m. on Sunday, February 14, 2010 with two toy pistols, kitchen knives, ropes and body spray to attack their victim.
She said at the time of the incident, there was a programme taking place at the hotel and, unknown to the suspects, the police had monitored their movements and discussions when they got to the hotel.
According to her, when the suspects wanted to flee after taking the laptop from their victim, the police fired warning shots, which made Isaac to stop.
DCOP Atinga said Francis then attempted to jump over the wall of the hotel but he was threatened that he would be shot at if he dared.
She said the three suspects immediately lay down and that facilitated their arrest.
With regard to the car-snatching incident, DCOP Atinga said the suspects, Fosu and Sarpong, hid two machetes on their body before hiring the taxi, with registration number GT 3938-09, from Agbogba to Haatso.
She said some minutes away from where they hired the taxi, the suspects came across a police/military checkpoint where they were asked to alight for a search on them.
DCOP Atinga said it was during the search that the machetes were retrieved from the suspects, adding that a third suspect, who was identified by the suspects only as Boamah, managed to escape.
She appealed to taxi drivers to be careful with the persons who hired them in the night, especially when the prospective hirers made mouth-watering offers.
Touching on the illegal gun manufacturers, ACP Yohuno said it had come to the notice of the police that the illegal gun manufacturers were fuelling robbery cases in the country.
He said the police had, accordingly, extended their fight against robbery to gun manufacturers, noting that it was in one of such exercises that the police had a tip off about the activities of Asamany and his apprentices.
ACP Yohuno said the three were arrested after they had been caught offering four pistols for sale at GH¢300 each.
He said Asamany allegedly admitted manufacturing the guns after his arrest.