Ashanti Police arrest gang targeting bank customers
By Praisebell Rosemond Larbi
The Ashanti Regional Police Command has arrested five individuals suspected to be part of a criminal syndicate specializing in stealing large sums of money from parked vehicles, particularly targeting individuals who withdraw cash from banks.
The arrest, part of intensified police operations aimed at clamping down on organized crime in the region, was announced at a press briefing held at the Ashanti Regional Police Headquarters on Monday, June 23.
Providing details of the operation, the Ashanti Regional Police Commander, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Emmanuel Teye Cudjoe, revealed that the suspects employed a coordinated two-car strategy to execute their crimes. One vehicle would be stationed outside a bank while a member of the group loitered nearby to identify potential victims withdrawing substantial amounts of cash.
Once a target was identified, the spotter would alert accomplices in the second vehicle, who then discreetly followed the victim.
“They would trail the individual until they left their car unattended, then use a special object to force the vehicle open and steal the cash before fleeing in the second car to avoid detection,” DCOP Cudjoe explained.
Investigations led to the arrest of five suspects, all of whom are Nigerian nationals. The suspects have been identified as Russell Ekenze, 29, a taxi driver; Francis Friday, 49, a politician; and Linus Agwazie, 51, a trader. Two women, Gifty Ozurumbam and Gladys Ibrahim, were also arrested for allegedly concealing the whereabouts of a key suspect, Cosmas Maduabuchukwu.
Cosmas reportedly sustained gunshot wounds during an attempted arrest and later sought refuge at a drinking bar owned by the two women in Kenyase. DCOP Cudjoe stated that the women were arrested for obstructing police investigations by failing to disclose the whereabouts of the injured suspect.
Police have impounded two vehicles believed to have been used in the criminal operations, a gold-colored Toyota Highlander with registration number GT 2471-14 and a black Toyota Highlander with registration number GX 7124-12. Both vehicles were found to have been fitted with fake license plates.
“Police efforts are ongoing to arrest all other members of the syndicate and dismantle the network completely,” DCOP Cudjoe assured.
In a separate development, the Nkawie Divisional Police Command has arrested 29-year-old Williams Ofori Atta at Kukuom in the Ahafo Region for the alleged murder of 28-year-old Emmanuel Kwabena Boakye.
According to police sources, the suspect admitted during interrogation to shooting and killing the victim. A mobile phone believed to belong to the deceased has been retrieved and is being held as evidence as investigations continue.
