KUMASI CENTRAL Police have arrested a fellow policeman, Constable Paul Twumasi Ankrah, for stealing a pump action
gun belonging to the manager of a forex bureau he was stationed to provide security at night.
Briefing the media, Chief Inspector Mohammed Yusif Tanko, Public Relations Officer of the Ashanti Regional Police Command, said on March 22 2010 Emmanuel Baidoo, the Manager of Johnson Forex Bureau, located at Amakom in Kumasi, reported that his pump action gun was missing from his office.
Acting on reliable information, the police PRO said the Zongo Police Station constable was invited for questioning at the station.
During interrogation, the beleaguered police constable alleged that one Ebenezer Sarfo Adu aka Kay, a final year student of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), gave him a pump action gun to sell.
After taking possession of the deadly weapon, Constable Twumasi Ankrah claimed he in turn gave it to one Mohammed, who quickly sent it to Ejura even though he (Twumasi) was able to produce it at 10am the same day.
Chief Inspector Tanko stated that on March 23 2010, Ebenezer Sarfo Adu was invited to the station after he was traced to the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, but he denied any knowledge of the allegation.
When Mr. Sarfo Adu challenged Constable Twumasi Ankrah in the presence of other high-ranking police officers and Mr. Baidoo at the Central Police Station as to whether he did indeed know him, the latter broke down in tears and confessed that he stole the gun himself.
Investigations revealed that on the night of March 19 2010, Constable Twumasi Ankrah, whilst on duty at the Johnson Forex Bureau in Amakom, allegedly took advantage of the poor visibility caused by a blackout to sneak into the strong room where he grabbed the pump action gun.
The chief inspector noted that Constable Twumasi Ankrah most likely entered the room with the intention of stealing money but changed his mind when he could not break into the steel cabinet that contained it.
The suspect supposedly took the gun and hid it outside for safe keeping until he was released from his night duty the following day.
In Chief Inspector Tanko’s view, the suspect evidently hid the weapon in his room at Zongo Police Barracks as he hunted for a prospective buyer.
Chief Inspector Tanko said the constable then gave the stolen gun to one Mohammed who lives behind the Zongo Police Station to be sent to Ejura for sale.
He explained that Constable Twumasi Ankrah later brought the gun on March 22, 2010 without identifying the said Mohammed.
Meanwhile, the Ashanti Police Command reassured members of the general public that the police administration has an internal mechanism which aims at weeding out personnel with questionable characters in order to make sure the service is free of such people.
From Dominic Mensah, Kumasi