4-year-old arrested for his father's sins

Accra, June 19 (he Insight) -- Four-year-old Solomon Owusu was arrested by four persons wearing police uniforms because his father owed a business man to the tune of 13 million cedis.

The four persons went to Sowutuom, a suburb of Accra, to arrest the father, Yaw Owusu in the company of the complainant, Mark, who works at the ?Articulate Station? near Kwame Nkrumah Circle.

When they found that Mr Yaw Owusu was not at home, they picked his four-year-old son and kept him from about 9 am to 8pm, when they returned him to his mother.

The four men said they picked up the boy so he could show them the whereabouts of his father.

When the Odorkor police was contacted for their reaction, both the Crime Officer DSP Mr Darke and the Superintendent Kesi said they did not detail any of their men to effect any arrest at Sowutuom on Sunday, June 11, 2006, when the incident took place.

Mr Darke, who was not pleased about the alleged incident, said he wanted to get to the bottom of the allegation so, immediately, he called the Sowutuom police station to verify the veracity or otherwise of the allegation.

The Sowutuom police also said none of their men had gone to the effect of any arrest on the said day.

Mr Yaw Owusu said somewhere in April this year, he bought ten vehicle tyres from a certain Mark, who works at ?Articulator Station? near Kwame Nkrumah Circle on behalf of his boss, whom he works for as a driver.

He said the value of the tyres was 13 million cedis. ?Unfortunately, there was a problem with my car so I couldn?t pay him,? Mr Owusu claimed.

According to him, Mark later came to his house with the intention of collecting his money. ?But things turned out to be bad. So I couldn?t give him anything?.

?This did not go down well with Mark, who threatened to collect his money by any means,? Mr Owusu had alleged.

He said on Sunday, June 11, 2006 when he was not in the house, Mark in the company of four strong policemen came into his house to arrest him.

According to him, ?My wife told me that they were disappointed when they did not meet me in the house, so they ransacked my room and the whole house and even took away my mobile phone, after they had picked up my son?.

He said his pregnant wife, Joyce Gafia, was so ?traumatized by the behaviour of the policemen? to the extent that ?she almost collapsed?.

When asked about the condition of his son, Solomon Owusu, Mr Owusu said, ?He became very weak and traumatized throughout the night. I don?t know whether my son was fed or not, what kind of food he was fed with, I don?t know, Mr Owusu had said.