The Ghana Police Service has rejected claims by the Ghana Bar Association (GBA) that the country’s rate of violent crimes is on ascendancy.
According to the Service, there is no upsurge in crime. The Service is on top of the security situation.”
The Association asserted in a statement that there is upsurge in armed robbery and other violent crimes being recorded in parts of the country which the police must expedite action to deal with.
This follows the killing of one of its members, Richard Badombie, by armed men in the Savannah Region last Saturday.
The group has “humbly and respectfully implored the relevant security agencies to carry out swift and thorough investigations of the incident in order to identify the perpetrators of this heinous crime and make them face the full rigours of the law”, the GBA said in a statement.
The lawyer was shot dead when the occupants of a Hyundai Accent saloon car with registration number GN 9890-17 were attacked between Banda Nkwanta and Nuoyiri on the Bole-Bamboi highway in the Savannah Region on Saturday when he was on his way to his hometown at Jirapa.
However, the police assures the Association with their observation about crime rate in the country.
“We wish to assure the public that there is no upsurge in crime,” the police said in a press release issued on Monday, May 30 by Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCOP) Kwesi Ofori, the Director-General for Public Affairs.
“The Service is on top of the security situation in the country and remains committed to its crime-fighting efforts.”
The police advised the public, particularly all special-interest groups, to be circumspect in their commentary on matters related to crime, especially the latest one as they urged the public to “rather support the police to find a quick resolution to the case”.
“We wish to assure the public that we remain focused and committed to fighting crime in the country.”
Already, three suspects have been arrested by the Savannah Regional Police Command in connection with the crime as efforts are underway to arrest two other suspects.
Per Police reports, the lawyer on reaching a section of the road between Banda Nkwanta and Nuoyiri, three men signalled the victim, who was driving with two other occupants, to stop the vehicle.
While slowing down, the suspects shot and killed the victim, who was travelling to Jirapa.
Meanwhile, the Ghana Bar Association says it is ready and prepared to give a “reward of GH¢20,000 to anyone who volunteers credible and legitimate information that will lead to the arrest and prosecution of the perpetrators of the crime.”
In a statement, the Association urged the general public to volunteer information to the security agencies to enable them to thoroughly investigate the matter with a view to identifying the perpetrators of the crime and making them suffer the consequences of their actions.
By Vincent Kubi