Eight Suspected NACOB Officials Granted Bail

An Accra Circuit Court on Monday afternoon granted bail to about eight officials of the Narcotics Control Board (NACOB), who were arrested two months ago for allegedly colluding with drug barons. The accused persons are Fatimatu Abdulai, Dennis Adutwum Gyimah, Yakubu Issaka, Timothy Aboloimpo and Abubakar Nallah, Chief Executive Officer of Tudu Mighty Jets, a football club. Others are Peter Ansong, Mutawa Kilu Yahaya Iddi, Jerry John Kwesi Abbiw, Eric Darko Akuffo and Nana Zamsah Evrah. The court had initially refused to grant them bail after counsels for the accused persons, Carl Adongo, James Abeaduka, Dr. Kweku Nsiah and Kwame Akuffo, applied for bail. The judge, Eric Kyei Baffuor, declined their requests, saying that since the matter was still under investigation, it would be prudent to have them remanded. But the judge on Monday granted their plea. They were charged with the abetment in the importation and exportation of narcotic drugs contrary to the Narcotic Drugs Law 1990 PNDCL 236 section 56(C) and (1)(1). The facts of the case are that Abubakar Nallah, a. k. a Abu Sundoko, is owner of Tudu Mighty Jets Football Club while the rest are officials of NACOB at the headquarters in Accra. Sometime in July this year, a suspected narcotic drug dealer, who has been on the wanted list in the US was arrested at Dansoman in Accra, and during investigations text messages from him were allegedly received from Fatimatu on his cell phone. The text messages revealed that Fatimatu of the Procurement Unit of NACOB had been aiding the suspected drug dealer and others to import and export narcotic drugs through Kotoka International Airport. Fatimatu was arrested and during interrogations admitted the offence, and mentioned some NACOB officials and personnel of other security agencies including the accused persons as accomplices who compromised their position and allowed drug couriers safe passage after receiving various sums of money from them.