Sporadic firing of arms between two rival gangs at Nima and Mamobi in Accra on Tuesday evening had one person being hit by a stray bullet and two others sustaining injuries.
Nine persons have so far been arrested over the mayhem.
The suspects have been identified as Abdul Gafari Mohammed, Bashir Ganiyu, Mohammed Saidu Baribui, Attawurah Basson, Gariba Abdul Mumuni, Abul Aziz Sulemana, Imoro Ibrahim, Issah Seidu and one Elliasu.
Rampant Firing
The young men, some of them armed with deadly weapons like pistols, clubs and cutlasses, turned the twin suburbs of Nima and Mamobi upside down as they chased each other amid rampant firing.
For passersby and others, all they could do was flee for their dear lives.
The police responded swiftly to restore order, as the trouble makers took to their heels, some of them abandoning their clubs and cutlasses.
But for the swift intervention by the police, the mayhem would have spread to other areas away from the epicentre.
The Director General of the Public Affairs Directorate, ACP/Mr. Kwesi Ofori, at a press briefing yesterday recounted what happened on the streets of Nima on Tuesday.
Preliminary Findings
According to ACP Ofori, preliminary investigation indicated that the violent disturbance was occasioned by a misunderstanding between the two gangster groups namely “Bombom group” which is led by one Ali Awudi and the “Kumodzi group” also led by one Ibrahim Hussein, based at Mamobi and Nima Gutter respectively.
He said further investigation established that Kumodzi who controls the Nima-based group went to Mamobi black market to transact foreign exchange business at about 3pm and whilst there, the two gangster groups violently attacked each other, in the course of which some gang members and two “black market” currency dealers were hit and injured.
He revealed that the two victims who happened to be caught in the violent disturbance are currently receiving medical attention at the 37 Military Hospital while a barbering shop was also vandalised in the process.
The police proceeded to the Greater Accra Regional Hospital after intelligence gathered indicated that two of the rioters who sustained gunshot injuries in the course of the clashes had been rushed there for treatment and met suspects Abdul Aziz Sulemana and Imoro Ibrahim with injuries and arrested them.
“Four other suspects namely; Bashir Ganiyu, Mohammed Saidu Baribui, Attawurah Basson, and Gariba Abdul Mumuni who were met at the hospital and being suspected to be part of the rioters were also arrested. They are currently in police custody assisting with the investigations. Meanwhile, the two injured arrested suspects have been transferred to the Police Hospital for treatment under police guard.”
In the early hours of Wednesday, the police gathered intelligence to the effect that one of the suspects who was captured on video in respect of the violence was hiding at Ashalaja in rural Accra.
The team proceeded to the said location and arrested suspects Issah Seidu and Elliasu from their hideouts.
More Search
A search conducted in the house in which they were arrested led to the retrieval of one pump action gun, one unregistered motorbike, and a military uniform.
The police also retrieved twelve (12) empty cartridges, one live bullet and three AAA live ammunition from the scene at Nima. Other items found and retained for the purposes of investigation included one pistol magazine, two machetes, two knives, a toy pistol and two mobile phones.
A special intelligence and surveillance team have been deployed to Nima, Mamobi and its adjoining communities in pursuit of the remaining members of the two gangster groups.
“Suspects Bombom alias Ali Awudu and Kumodzi alias Ibrahim Hussein are declared wanted. We, therefore, appeal to the public to assist by volunteering information that will lead to their arrest,” ACP Ofori said, adding “we further urge the public to remain calm as National, Regional and Divisional patrol teams are deployed to maintain law and order at Nima, Mamobi and surrounding communities.”
ACP Ofori said that the Director General in charge of Operations DCOP Mohammed Fuseini Suraji, the Accra Regional Police Commander DCOP Iddi Seidu and the Nima Divisional Commander, ACP Abraham Acquaye have since visited the scene to engage residents on the issue.
The Police Operations team have also visited the area for assessment of damage caused by the hoodlums whilst personnel from the Formed Police Unit have been at the scene providing security and to avert further clashes.
DCOP Suraji urged Imams and opinion leaders of the area to assist the police to maintain peace and order in the area.
He said what happened last Tuesday should not be repeated since residents need peace to go about their respective duties.
He said, “The law doesn’t debar any person or group from forming an association or belonging to an association but any person or group that will breach the peace of the country will not be allowed to operate,” adding “you can form your association for development or entrepreneurship but to fight each other, we will not allow and we advise those doing that to stop since the Quran and Bible forbid it.”
Until the police press conference cleared the air on the state of the injured, many had spread the story about three deaths.
This has however, not been corroborated by the police who have spoken about injuries and not fatalities.
By Linda Tenyah-Ayettey