By Agency Reports - Punch Newspapers
A major amount of arms and ammunition, allegedly bound for Nigeria, was seized by the Ghana police in Accra on Tuesday.
The arms and ammunition, including hordes of AAA cartridges, 10 pomp-action guns and 20 double-barreled guns, were found in a false compartment under the flour plate of the carrier truck.
Addressing the media on Tuesday evening, Accra Regional Police Commander, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Rose Atinga Bio, said she had received a call from an informant around 15:00 GMT (4.00pm Nigerian time) that a truck was off loading what could be smuggled goods in a house at Achimota, a suburb of the capital.
The operation, which could be a major break-through for the police into the modus operandi of arms smugglers in the region, led to the arrest three Ghanaians and two Nigerians.
“Upon reaching there, my men only saw an empty truck branded in coca-cola trade-mark on the compound,” she told the media.
But upon scrutiny, the policemen realised that the flour plate had just been welded at some specific points, raising their suspicion that there could be something unusual under the plate.
The police team ordered the driver to open the compartment and large caches of arms and ammunition were seen concealed under the flour plate.
Bio said Kwadwo Baffoe, a Ghanaian, claimed ownership of the cargo, while two other Ghanaians, Kofi Aboagye and Kwasi Nkrumah, had also been apprehended.
In addition, two Nigerians, Sandy Eze from Anambra State and Amosu Taiwo from Ogun State, were also arrested, the police officer said.
The owner admitted to the police that the arms were being transported to Nigeria in the truck with registration number XA 761-YAB.
“This is the first of its kind since 2009 when I took charge of the region. We are very much alert, especially because this year is an election year, and so we will protect the nation with the force at our disposal,” said Bio.
