Big blot on BNI: Director named in car seizure; Officers go mute

The incessant rate at which abuse of power, show offs and ‘rambo-style hooliganism’ have become the order of the day in some public institutions, especially at top Security agencies seem to have reached its peak and may consequently stretch beyond control if Government does not immediately put measures in place to curtail the situation.

In the wake of the above condition, a Tema-based businessman, Nana Obiri Yeboah has sought the intervention of the Chief of Staff and the Presidency to investigate the circumstances that led to the seizure of his Toyota Camry vehicle, somewhere in 2014 and kept by the Director of the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI), Mr. Yaw Donkor, without any concrete justification.

According to Nana Obiri Yeboah, his unregistered Toyota Camry, 2011 model had been in the custody of the BNI boss since 2014, and all efforts to retrieve it had proven futile.

In a petition addressed to the Chief of Staff, Nana Obiri explained that somewhere in 2014 a cousin of his, one Raymond visited him from their hometown, Brekum in the Brong – Ahafo Region, and sought his permission to use his car for some errands in town.

He said his cousin Raymond had told him a certain white man had remitted an amount of USD$203,000.00 to him (Raymond) and his friends and that he had come to Tema for the withdrawal of the said money from the bank.

“He called to inform me that he and his friends had withdrawn the USD$203,000.00 from the bank, and that his friends had called in the police for his arrest and that the entire monies had been collected from him. While I was talking to him on the phone, I heard someone at the background shouting, bring your phone, and thereafter the line went off”, he averred.

He further explained that after the phone call, he rushed to Accra to look for his cousin but could not see him “until after three days later he came back home and narrated to me all that happened. According to him, he was arrested by the Police and taken to Anti–Armed Robbery Unit at the C.I.D Headquarters, Accra; and was later taken to the BNI office near 37 Military Hospital, Accra”.

He said he quickly drove to the C.I.D Headquarters and showed his documents to the Police officer in charge at the Anti-robbery Unit, and one Mr. Asare told him he had handed over the car to the BNI, and as a result directed him to go and see the BNI Boss.

According to him, he met the BNI Boss Yaw Donkor but all efforts to claim his car fell on deaf ears, and no explanation was offered

“The Director of BNI on one occasion detailed two of his men to accompany me to my house hoping that the car would be brought to me at my house, but that was not to be. I have visited the BNI Director more than twenty times (20) and I have not seen any sign that the Director would release your petitioner’s car to me”, He stated in his petition.

Meanwhile, all attempts to reach the BNI boss has proven futile.