I am innocent of the crime - Amanor

Accra, July 24, GNA - Aams Amanor, one of the five accused persons charged with six Policemen for allegedly robbing a Ghanaian businessman of 53,000 dollars, on Friday told an Accra Circuit Court that he is innocent of the crime for which he is being held.

He said he was rather the one who was helping the complainant, Kweku Duah, whom he claimed was his friend, to recover the latter's money from Kwame Attah a.k.a Jeffrey, who is now at large. Amanor was continuing his evidence led by his Counsel at the ongoing trial at an Accra Circuit Court. Aams Amanor together with Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Patrick Kwapong, Chief Inspector Thomas Adu, Sergeant John Adjapong, Corporal Lawrence Dennis Quansah, and Constable Benjamin Blejumah are being held on charges of conspiracy. The rest are Kwasi Tawiah, Peter Kwame Gyasi aka Kwame Tawiah and Bismark Ampofo.

Apart from DSP Kwapong, the rest are facing an additional charge of robbery. They have all pleaded not guilty to the charges. Amanor also said when he, Tawiah and Gyasi met Duah and the Police investigation team led by DSP Kwapong at a restaurant in Tema, he (Amanor) showed them a copy of Chief Inspector Adu's retirement letter. Amanor said DSP Kwapong also told them to look for Jeffrey because they were going back to Accra with the police team and that they should contact them on the phone if need be. Amanor said Gyasi, the one who led Duah, Mohammed Amanor, Tawiah and Ampofo to a house at Community seven the previous day purported to belong to a gold dealer, told them that he knows where Jeffrey works as a car dealer near the Dzorwulu traffic light. He said Gyasi also led them to a place near the Shaba Shopping Centre at Tesano which he claimed was the office of Jeffrey, but did not meet him there.

He said after their rounds Duah, Amanor, Tawiah, Gyasi and Ampofo came back to the Relax Cot hotel and met the manager to discuss what had happened the previous day.

He said the hotel manager expressed concern about the way the Police broke into room 108, and that he had made his statement to the Accra Central Police so the rest of them should give their statements the following day.

He said on February 4, he (Amanor) together with Duah, Tawiah and Gyasi went to the Accra Cenral Police station and were taken to ACP Bright Oduro's office to write their statements after which they ware detained by the Police. He said the next day, they were taken to the Police Headquarters for further interrogation and that they had denied knowledge of Duah's missing money.

The facts of the case are that Aams Amanor and the complainant, Mr Duah, knew each other when they were both in Switzerland. Sometime, last year, Mr Duah discussed with Amanor about coming to Ghana to buy gold and he (Amanor) assured the complainant of assisting him to purchase the gold.

Consequently, Mr Duah arrived in Ghana on February 1, this year, and checked in at Relax Court Hotel at Dworwulu in Accra and got in touch with Amanor who informed him about the dealers they were going to buy gold from.

On February 2, this year, at about 2200 hours, Amanor and Jeffery, who was then armed with a pistol, and is now at large, Gyasi, and a Nigerian also now at large, went to the Hotel room of Mr Duah under the pretext of transacting gold business. The said business was to take place between the complainant and Jeffery. Before the meeting, Jeffery and the Nigerian had arranged with Amanor, who had also instructed Chief Inspector Adu, Sgt Adjapong, Corporal Quansah and a soldier who is at large, to go to the hotel. When they got there they met Lance Corporal Muntari, Constables Acheampong and Blejuamah.

They broke into Mr Duah's room. Jeffery then pulled a pistol and beat the complainant until he bled from his nose. They further searched Mr Duah, and took two envelopes containing 53,000 dollars, 800 Euros, 2,000 Ghana cedis from his pocket. Not satisfied, they ransacked Mr Duah's room and took away a black bag containing two walkman CD players, a digital camera valued at 4,000 dollars, two bunches of keys, and a Standard Chartered Bank cheque book. The accused persons said they were arresting the complainant for dealing in illegal business but later abandoned him at Tema. Mr Duah reported the matter to the Police and the accused persons were arrested. 24 July 2009