The big police bust in 2005 that ‘made’ COP Kofi Boakye

Figuratively or by way of example, most of the references that have been made to criminals in the last two decades, or in descriptive ways, have been done using the story or the name of the notorious armed robber, Ataa Ayi (Raymond Ayee Ayitey).

Ataa Ayi was described by the police in 2005 as the nation’s most wanted criminal and was arrested on Monday, February 28.

According to a report written by the GNA and published on GhanaWeb, the police officials said that Ataa Ayi (32 years old at the time) was arrested in a house at Teshie, in Accra, when he was drying his clothes.

It was a big bust that made even bigger headlines, but attached to it was the bravery and heroics that followed for the police and the man who led them to effect this momentous bust.

COP Kofi Boakye, who recently retired from the Ghana Police Service after he turned 60 years old, was, at the time, ACP Kofi Boakye, and the Greater Accra Regional Commander.

His ingenuity and leadership was what led to the arrest of the notorious Ataa Ayi.

And as the police communicated, his arrest was made following tip-offs from “public-spirited persons,” both from inside and outside Ghana.

According to the 2005 report, Ataa Ayi had made plans to travel to Germany before he was busted.

“With the arrest of Ataa Ayi, a whole generation of armed robbers has been wiped off,” Kofi Boakye said.

Subsequently, Ataa Ayi was put before the court and was handed an over 100 years sentence in hard labour (70 years for his robbery, and 40 years for robbing a businesswoman, Dora Kumi, of $65,000 and GH¢4,500 on February 5, 2003).

Indeed, that single big bust led by COP Kofi Boakye, defined a pivotal level in his career as a police officer, going on to endear him to other greater opportunities to prove himself, in other parts of the country.

For instance, during his time in the Ashanti Region years later, the security firebrand instilled fear in the hearts of many criminals because of his dynamic approach to fishing them out in the community.

His administration made several notable arrests of wanted criminals in Kumasi and its environs.

Kofi Boakye’s instrumental role in the arrest of notorious Kumasi-based robber, 2PM:

In a story carried by GhanaWeb on February 22, 2023, it narrated how a notorious Kumasi-based armed robber by the name '2PM' shared details of the events that led to how celebrated senior police officer, COP Kofi Boakye, nabbed him years ago.

According to him, he had fortified himself so much and become so experienced in the handling of different types of ammunition until he returned to Ghana and established a notorious name for himself.

He explained that one evening, unbeknownst to him, the police chief, COP Kofi Boakye, and his men, had been dispatched into his community to nab him.

Being someone who had good friends in the service, he said he would usually get tip-offs on when the police were coming, but that evening, Kofi Boakye played a smarter move on him by using a completely new team of policemen.

“I was arrested at Abuakwa (sic) but with my arrest, what happened was that they sent some men there and then the person who looks out for me called me to inform me about it. That was when I said to myself, who are these small policemen who refused to call me when they were coming? That was how boastful I was too.

“Unknown to me, it was the chief himself who was coming, and so I planned to have revenge on the policemen. On my way, I was high on cocaine, and tramadol, thinking I was going to face them. So, it was even someone’s car parked on the side of the road that I moved. On my return, I came to park the stranger’s car and decided to outwit them by jumping into a passenger car but unknown to me, that car was full of policemen.

“So, just when I was about to alight in front of my house to get money and return to Accra, not knowing they had surrounded the whole town. When I got down, it was like a war front… I then used a certain corner, hoping it would be my way out but then a non-uniformed policeman grabbed me at my waist. I asked him why he has grabbed me and then he told me that I was the one they were looking for.

“Immediately, I head-butted him and then he went to the ground and started bleeding. Before I knew it, I was standing in front of Kofi Boakye. In almost a split second, before I knew it, I was in a car, standing in front of Kofi Boakye. He looked at me and said, ‘You are the 2PM eh? Today, I’m about to beat you,’” he narrated.

Kofi Boakye retires:

On Wednesday, April 5, 2023, COP Kofi Boakye officially retired from the Ghana Police Service after over 3 decades in the force.

Until his retirement, he was the head of the Ghana Police Service’s Legal and Prosecution Division.

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