Police probe whereabouts of 18 vehicles

THE police are investigating a case of 18 vehicles suspected to belong to the State but which have allegedly been diverted and parked in private warehouses, the Interior Minister, Alhaji Malik Alhassan Yakubu, has disclosed.

He said the investigations are also being narrowed down to the Registrar-General’s Department to trace the owners of the companies into whose name, six of the vehicles have been transferred.

The minister was reacting to an urgent question by Mr Benjamin Kumbour (NDC-Lawra Nandom) whether he was aware of the visit to the premises of Kamara Limited, along the Spintex Road in Accra by heavily-armed policemen on the instructions of the Commissioner of Police (CID) allegedly looking for stolen vehicles, and if so, who the complainant was.

The police, the minister further disclosed, are also investigating Kamara Company which is alledged to have registered seven Nissan Pick-ups out of the 18 vehicles in its name, while two others were registered in the name of Japan Motors Limited. Two other vehicles, a Land Rover and a Defender were also found to have been transferred from the name of Kamara Company Limited to Mabey and Johnson Limited on January 26, 2001.

Giving the full facts of the case, Alhaji Yakubu said the police, acting on a tip-off that some vehicles believed to be government property were stolen and being concealed in some private warehouse along the Spintex Road, conducted a search for the vehicles.

He said detectives found 18 vehicles, including three unregistered ones, parked in the yard of Kamara Company Limited.

The Police, therefore, placed a 24-hour guard at the premises of the company whilst it carried its investigations.

The minister said on February 2, when the guardsmen were on duty in the yard, they were surrounded by a group of people believed to be NDC supporters. As part of their protest, a bull-dozer was driven to block the main entrance to the yard.

He said the policemen on duty in the yard sensing danger, called for reinforcement and additional policemen were dispatched to the yard, but no incident was recorded.

Alhaji Yakubu said police investigations revealed that seven of the Nissan pick-ups were registered in the name of Kamara Company Limited.

He said two of the vehicles were also registered in the name of Japan Motors Limited, whilst two others, a Land Rover and a Defender, were found to have been transferred from the name of Kamara Company Limited to Mabey and Johnson Limited on January 26, 2001.

The Minister said on the same day , Kamara Company Limited also transferred ownership of six of the vehicles into the name of different companies.

The investigations further revealed that one Nissan Patrol Station Wagon with registration number GT 6540 C found in the yard is registered in the name of the Ministry of Roads and Highways.

He said when the police quizzed the Managing Director of Kamara Company Limited, Mr Baba Kamara, about the presence of the vehicles on his premises and their ownership, he stated that they were part of 50 vehicles he had bought from Japan Motors for the NDC to run its capaign during the last parliamentary and presidential elections.

However, when he was further interrogated, Mr Kamara changed his story to say that the three unregistered cars were part of eight vehicles the NDC received from the Electoral Commission to run their campaign and that they were in his custody for safe keeping.

When questioned on the Nissan Patrol Station Wagon with registration number GT 6540 C , Mr Kamara claimed that the vehicle belonged to Mr Steve Akorli, the Member of Parliament for Ho East and the Deputy Minister for Roads and Highways in the previous government.

He was, however, unable to explain how the vehicle came to be parked in his yard.

Mr Baba Kamara maintained that the rest of the vehicles belonged to him. He claimed that he bought them from Japan Motors Limited, although he was unable to produce receipts to cover the payments he made to Japan Motors in respect of the vehicles.

The minister further disclosed that a search at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Division (DVLD) confirmed that all the vehicles were registered in the name of Kamara Company Limited before the six were later transferred.

However, there were no Customs, Excise and Preventive Service Entry Forms on the files to establish that appropriate duties have been paid on the vehicles either by the company or Japan Motors Limited.

The minister said Mr Kamara submitted an ordinary statement on the issue to the police and he was asked to provide evidence that he did in fact buy the vehicles from Japan Motors.

He was requested to satisfy the investigators that appropriate customs duties have been paid on the vehicles but he has become unco-operative and evasive.

“In fact, Mr Baba Kamara has , up to date, not been able to produce any receipt to cover the payment he made to Japan Motors Limited”.

Meanwhile, the management of Japan Motors has confirmed the sale of the vehicles to Mr Baba Kamara. The company produced customs papers covering registration of the vehicles with DVLD.

The police established that four of the vehicles are still in the name of Japan Motors and according to the company, this was an administrative lapse.

“From the fore-going,it appeared to the police that apart from the three Niva cars which are said to belong to the NDC, the party does not have any connection with the other vehicles found in the yard of Baba Kamara’’.

The minister said police investigations are being directed to the Registrar-General’s Department to trace who the owners of the companies into whose names the six vehicles have been transferred for their version.

Mr Steve Akorli is also being traced to explain himself in connection with the Nissan Patrol wagon belonging to the Ministry of Roads and Highways parked in the yard of Kamara Company Limited.

In an answer to a question by Mr. Emil Brantuo, NDC member for Buem, as to whether the police did the right thing by going to the premises of Kamara Company with a search warrant, the minister replied that the police acted within the law.

When the Minority Leader, Mr. A. S. K. Bagbin, wanted to know how many vehicles he (the minister) claims to have been stolen, Alhaji Yakubu said “instead of having to spend time going through the records, it was better to track down the vehicles first’’.

He urged the minority not to misconstrue the police investigation into the case to mean witch-hunting.

To another question by Dr Mohammed Ibn Chambas, member for Bimbilla as to whether it was proper for the police to raid the premises in full combat gear, the minister said the ideal situation would have been to go there under cover but ‘’knowing where we came from, it was better the police were armed’’.

Asked by Mr. I. K. Adjei-Mensah, Deputy Minority Leader and NDC member for Techiman North whether the police raid was not tantamount to the breach of the freedom of the individual, the Minister said the police has a constitutional obligatin to act on tip-offs to prevent crime. or nip it in the bud.

When his attention was called to a statement by Mr E. K. D. Adjaho that Mr Jake Obetsebi-Lamptey Minister of Presidential Affairs described the police’s action as over-reaction, the Minister said Jake told him that the newspaper publication attributed to him was not true and that he, Jake, did not want to engage in a battle with the press.