Five (5) high-ranking police officers have been interdicted by the Ghana Police Service after being captured in a viral video allegedly extorting money from individuals at an illegal mining (galamsey) site.
The suspects include Chief Inspector Matthew Blay, Chief Inspector Francis Arthur, Inspector Eric Osei of the Osu Police Station in Accra, Sergeant Amos Dery of the National Protection Unit (NPU), and Inspector Joseph Okyere Asabre of the Obuasi Police District.
Over the week, a video surfaced online that captured one of the interdicted police officers at a heavily destroyed illegal mining site asking for money from individuals suspected of engaging in illegal mining activities, while assuring them of protection and security.
In the video, the police officer was seen folding two GH¢200 notes into his pocket, urging them that if they don’t settle half of the amount charged, they would have to leave the galamsey site.
The ‘galamseyers’ were also heard negotiating with the officer. The officer, in anger, called on them to surrender their galamsey equipment, emphasising that until the total amount was paid, their operations should be halted.
Also, some two officers of the Ghana Police Service were secretly filmed allegedly soliciting for bribe during a routine stop-and-search operation.
In the viral video, the officers were seen stopping a driver of a private vehicle for inspection.
The four-minute-long footage, shared by the Daily Graphic on Facebook, shows the officers searching the driver and going through his wallet, where they found both cedi and dollar notes.
After discovering that the driver did not have his driving licence on him, the officers were heard allegedly asking him for money, claiming they were four (4) officers on duty.
One of the officers was also asking the driver to “settle them well” and offering to share their contact details in case he was stopped by other officers along the way.
These pockets of incidents sparked outrage and calls for accountability within the Police Service, resulting in the interdiction of the officers by police management.
A statement signed by the Director General of the Police Public Affairs Directorate, DCOP Grace Ansah-Akrofi, stated that the police officers have been referred to the Police Professional Standards Bureau for investigation in line with internal disciplinary procedures.
The service reaffirmed its commitment to professionalism, integrity and accountability, and assured the public that appropriate sanctions would be applied once investigations conclude.
By Prince Fiifi Yorke