Registration official remanded in custody

Page 17: Daily Graphic, April 12, 2012. Story: Albert K. Salia A REGISTRATION official in the ongoing biometric registration exercise has been remanded in custody for stealing a hand-held scanner. Mohammed Ibrahim, 38, is said to have stolen the hand-held scanner on March 29, this year, and given it to a trader at Nima for safekeeping. The Osu Magistrate Court, presided over by Mr Aboagye Tandoh, remanded him to reappear on April 12, 2012 and supoenaed the Nima Electoral Officer and the Director of Elections at the Electoral Commission to appear before it today. Briefing the Daily Graphic after the case was adjourned, Detective Sergeant Thomas Prempeh, who is the investigator in the case, said the complainant in the case, Mr Mohammed Iddrisu, who is the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Electoral officer in the area, came to the Nima Station on March 29 this year in the company of two ladies, Ayeshetu Tijani and Evelyn Opoku, with the hand-held scanner to lodge the complaint about the stolen equipment. According to him, Mr Iddrisu said the accused person, Mohammed Ibrahim, had left the equipment with Evelyn Opoku for safekeeping. He said Evelyn claimed the accused person gave the item to her to be given to a third person identified only as Sakora. Sgt Prempeh said Evelyn subsequently led the police to arrest Ibrahim. Upon interrogation, he said, Ibrahim admitted stealing the hand-held scanner when the EC officials were unloading the equipment and other registration materials at Nima on March 29. Sgt Prempeh said Ibrahim was subsequently charged with stealing and was remanded till Tuesday. He, however, said because the EC officials were not in court, the judge adjourned the case to today and subpoenaed the EC officials to appear in court.