A Circuit Court in Tema has sentenced two police officers to a total of 13 years in prison for unlawful possession of narcotics and conspiracy to traffic narcotics.
The court, presided over by Her Lordship Aleanor Kakra Barnes Botchway, found Assistant Superintendent of Police Nasiru Amadu and Corporal Emmanuel Mintah guilty after almost four years of trial.
Facts of the Case
Prosecutor, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Ernest Kuofie, said that in 2023 a police officer at the Afienya District Police Command lodged a complaint about the activities of the two officers.
The accused, Amadu, aged 48, was then the second-in-command at the Sakumono District Police Headquarters, where Mintah, aged 43, worked under him as a service driver.
On November 19, 2023, the complainant was performing snap-check duties when intelligence was received that a Nissan Navara with registration number GP 727 was transporting narcotic drugs from Ho to Accra.
At about 19:15 hours that same day, the accused persons arrived at the snap-check point and were intercepted. A search of the vehicle revealed eight sacks containing 541 compressed parcels of substances suspected to be narcotic drugs.
Investigations revealed that Mintah had a relative known as Oluman, a resident of Ashaiman Tulaku, who dealt in narcotics. On November 19, Mintah was hired by Oluman to transport a quantity of Indian hemp from Peki Tsibu in the Volta Region to Tulaku for a fee. Mintah then contacted Amadu, who also reached out to Oluman to agree on the terms of engagement.
After finalising the arrangement, the accused persons drove vehicle GP 727 from Sakumono to a forest area near Peki Tsibu, where they received the drugs from a waiting Benz bus. They were later arrested while transporting the substances.
It was further established that this was the second time the officers had engaged in the illegal operation.
The exhibits were examined by the Forensic Crime Laboratory.
The court held that the two had unlawfully possessed narcotic drugs for trafficking contrary to Section 23(1) of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960, and Section 37(2)(b) of the Narcotic Control Commission Act, 2020 (Act 1019).
The convicts were sentenced to 5 and 10 years each, respectively, to run concurrently. In addition, they were fined 10,000 penalty units (GH₵120,000). In default, they will serve an additional three years each.
Source3;3news.com
