Two armed robbers who were arrested in the Ashanti Region have been sentenced to 40 years imprisonment.
The two, Emeka Opara and Samuel Kalo, were arrested on 30 May 2022, following their attack on a victim at ECOBANK, Abrepo Junction, where they succeeded in bolting with a bag containing GH₵ 30, 000.
The police, in a statement, said they were able to retrieve the GH₵ 30, 000.00 and successfully prosecuted them.
“Because the two have been duly convicted and are no longer suspects, we have displayed their images in line with our new standard operating procedure. Any member of the public who can recognise any of them in connection with other crimes should kindly contact the nearest police station for further action,” the release added.
The police further assured the public about its readiness to continue to fight crime and bring criminals to face justice.
There appears to be a surge in reported cases of armed robbery across the country, resulting in increased police visibility across the various communities.
Robbery cases on the rise
From January to the end of October 2019, the West Africa Network for Peacebuilding (WANEP) early warning system records captured 80 armed robbery cases in Ghana.
Fast forward to 9 June 2021, a man was shot in the stomach in a daylight robbery by two armed men at Pig Farm.
He was pronounced dead 24 hours after being treated at the 37 Military Hospital.
That same day, two armed men also broke into a forex bureau near Honeysuckle in Osu and made away with an undisclosed amount of money.
The culprits in these two incidents are currently at large.
On 11 June 2021, an unidentified man in an attempted robbery attacked the driver of a Nissan Pathfinder with registration number GE-8088-11 on the GIMPA- Fiesta Royale road.
He threw a big stone at the vehicle, smashing its glass door, and tried to escape into a nearby bush. But he was arrested by the police after the victim drew the police’s attention.
On 14 June, three armed robbers on a motorcycle trailed a Mon-Tran bullion van and robbed occupants of the cash in the van –two were left dead at Adedenkpo in Jamestown.
Sometime in December 2021, two persons were arrested for the East Legon robbery that occurred on Sunday, 5 December.
The suspects were arrested following a distress call received by the patrol team that some unknown men had invaded a neighbourhood at CPL Estate, East Legon Hills.
An initial search led to the retrieval of a 75-inch curved television set, an iPhone 12 pro max, one Techno smartphone, and a revolver pistol with four rounds of ammunition.
The team also found a KIA Morning Saloon car which the suspects had parked at the roadside.