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The Tema Regional Police Command of the Ghana Police Service has identified a growing phenomenon which involves the use of hoodlums to attack, kidnap, torture and sometimes seize vehicles of, people who are indebted to others, to collect their money.

The practice is criminal and when such reports get to the police, you could be arrested, investigated and prosecuted for serious crimes as robbery and kidnapping, Superintendent Kwabena Otuo Acheampong stated at the Tema office of the Ghana News Agency and the Command's security awareness campaign platform.

The GNA-Tema and Regional Police Command Security Awareness advocacy platform seeks to educate the public on security issues, including crime prevention, responsibility of stakeholders especially the communities and ignite a renewed sense of media and security collaboration for safer environment.

Supt. Otuo Acheampong cited a case in which a businessman in oil and gas, together with four others were being investigated for robbery.

He said the businessman solicited the assistance of the four young men, who forcibly collected the ignition key to a Mercedes Benz of his colleague businessman, because of a business transaction, in the process, GHC25,000.00 in the car was stolen by the thugs.

In a related development, four young men were arrested and are being investigated in connection with kidnapping, imprisonment and assault on a landlord who collected GHC2,000.00 from one of the young men under the pretext of renting a room to him.

“We want to warn the public to desist from such irresponsible behaviour and rather resort to the police or the courts for redress.

“The Tema Regional Police Command is resolute and will deal with anyone, in accordance with the law, who aids and abets or allows himself to be used for such criminal acts,” Supt. Otuo Acheampong warned.

Meanwhile, Supt. Otuo Acheampong has reiterated a call to the public to commit into memory advertised police emergency numbers in the police jurisdictions where they live, and call for assistance whenever they were in distress.

“Save such emergency numbers on your phones as this will reduces police response time and has the tendency to prevent or mitigate the impact of crime and disorder,” he said.

Residents of Tema and neighbouring communities such as Ashaiman, Dodowa, Afienya, Prampram, Kpone, Ada, Sege are to memorize or save and call +233291206472 or +233542719093 around the clock, whenever and wherever they need police assistance.