The Ashanti Regional Police Command has arrested suspected armed robbers at their various hideouts in the region.
ASP Ampofo Duku, Deputy Regional Commander, told newsmen that on July 3, 2015, at about 5:15pm, five men wielding AK47 assault rifles stationed themselves at a section of the Esaase-Bonkankye road and stopped both commercial and private vehicles plying that section of the road and robbed the drivers and their passengers of various sums of monies, mobile phones and other personal effects.
According to him, on the same day, at about 5:30pm, the Abuakwa police command received a distress call of a robbery incident at the above mentioned location. The Divisional Commander, ACP Fosu Agyemeng and the Abuakwa District commander, Supt. Joseph Nyaba and their men rushed to the scene, but the suspected armed men had fled the scene through the bushes, after their nefarious operations.
First-hand information gathered at the scene from some of the drivers and passengers revealed that, some of armed men were of Fulani extraction. One Gabriel Amoah, a pastor of Methodist Church Abuakwa branch who was driving his Golf Saloon car with registration No.GE1488-V was shot on the left ankle by one of the suspected robbers.
Gabriel Amoah was rushed to Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital where he was admitted. The Deputy Commander stated that, the vehicle with their occupants were escorted to Abuakwa police station where official complaint was lodged, while medical forms were issued to the victims who complained of having been assaulted by some of the suspected robbers to go to hospital for treatment.
He said on July 9, 2015, police intelligence led to the arrest of a 28-year-old farmer, Karim Yahaya, Ayoboa Ibrahim, 29, a Labourer, Fuseini Hamidu,18, a driver’s mate, Ibrahim Bukari, 39, a cattle dealer and Appiah Asare Michael, a 23 year old taxi driver at Osika Hotel near Agric Nzema, a suburb of Kumasi.
The Police Commander said the suspects who were arraigned before the Nkawie circuit court on preliminary charges of robbery, have been remanded in police custody to re-appear on July 29, 2015. Meanwhile, an identification parade held at the forecourt of the Abuakwa District police headquarters, had suspects Ayoba Ibrahim and Fuseini Hamidu identified by some of the robbery victims as their assailants.
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