Three persons in police custody over impersonation, robbery

Three persons who allegedly posed as military, police and a police investigator (CID) to rob a woman of GH¢4,950.00 have been remanded by an Accra Circuit Court.

Isaac Amejor, Michael Baffour, alias Mike and Muntakilu Saddick, who dressed as military man, policeman and a police CID, in that order, have been charged with conspiracy, impersonation, robbery, preparation to commit crime, restriction on the use of military uniform and equipment and being on premises for unlawful purpose.

The Court remanded them into custody due to the nature of the case and the fact that they do not have a fixed place of abode.

They all pleaded not guilty to all the charges and would be brought back to Circuit Court Ten on May 23, 2023.

Prosecution was ordered by the Court to file disclosures latest by May 17, 2023, and serve the accused persons.

The Court heard that Amejor was dismissed from the Ghana Police Service Baffour, alias Mike resigned from the Ghana Army in 2014 and Mutakilu who used to be a trader at Kantamanto in Accra abandoned his trading business.

Amejor and Baffour resided at various locations within Kasoa as Muntakilu resided at Asamankese in the Eastern region and the three became friends and decided to form a syndicate group that would constantly engage in robbery activities targeted at innocent citizens and other persons who visited various financial institutions to transact financial services.

Prosecution said as part of their scheme, they usually hired taxis to take them around to monitor clients who patronized various banks and immediately they came across potential clients who withdrew large sums of money, Mutakilu would pose as a detective dressed in casual wear mandated to enter banking halls, quickly describe the potential victims to his accomplices who would be strategically positioned in the hired taxi to operate.

During their operations, Amejor. who unlawfully dressed in police attire would alight from the car and confront their victims by issuing instructions that he or she was under arrest.

Baffour, on the other hand, unlawfully dressed in military uniform, would join his colleagues to force the victims into the hired taxi, making such victims believe that they were employees of the Ghana Police and Ghana Army.

They would then order the driver to move the car immediately as they directed him on routes to use, then later they rob their victims of monies in their possession and push them out of the car along the way and thereafter share the booty.

The Court heard that on Wednesday, March 22, 2023, the accused persons met at Kasoa toll booth and hired a taxi to convey them to Dansoman to engage in such robberies on clients of targeted financial institutions.

They, the Court heard, started assessing various banks in Bortianor with the intent of changing on prospective victims.

The three accused persons found themselves in and around the premises of Ghana Commercial Bank PLC Dansoman for unlawful purposes whilst in and around the Bank for unlawful purposes, they eventually settled on robing victim Priscilla Quansah, a mobile money vendor, who had gone to the Dansoman Branch of the Ghana Commercial Bank to withdraw money.

Mutakilu as a disguised spy, entered the banking hall where he spotted the victim who had withdrawn cash GH¢4,950.00 from the merchant mobile phone she was using to work.

Prosecution said the disguised spy quickly called his accomplices who sat in the taxi parked on a street beside the bank and described the dress code and features of the victim.

He quickly moved out and joined his accomplices, where Amejor came out of the car and stopped the victim who was on her way to her business center, and informed her that she had been reported to them by her employer for engaging in an unspecified crime hence she was under arrest.

Prosecution said he forced her into the back seat of the car where she sat between the two accused persons in police and military uniforms respectively, adding that Baffour immediately sought to know how much she withdrew and the victim mentioned GH¢4,000.00 and asked the driver to move the car and he acted as instructed.

Baffour kept on directing the driver on the routes to use until they got to the entrance of a house where the driver was ordered to stop the car. Baffour lighted and ordered the victim to leave her bag containing the amount cashed together with an initial amount of GH¢950.00 and two cellular phones in her handbag to enable him to lead her to their boss, Mr Appiah. in the house where the car had stopped.

The victim tried to resist them but she was forced out of the car and her bag snatched from her hand and kept in the car whilst Baffour led her into the house.

Prosecution said Baffour quickly abandoned the victim and ran back to join the car and ordered the driver to speed off. The three robbers paid the driver GH¢410.00 and shared the rest of the money.

Mutakilu, the Court heard, was given the android cellular phone of the victim as it was his turn to have it since his accomplices had benefitted from previous phones realised from their robbery activities.

The accused persons collected the driver's contact number and assured him that they would always work with him.

Prosecution said Mutakilu called the driver on Thursday, March 23, 2023, to convey them to Tema where they had planned to operate.

Amejor and Baffour as usual dressed in their police and military attires whilst their accomplice Mutakilu dressed in his casual attire but unknown to them, a surveillance team of the Ghana Police Service was in pursuit, monitoring them from the Kasoa toll booth area.

The Police pursued and eventually apprehended them on the Accra-Tema motorway. They were later identified by victim Priscilla Quansah and after investigations, they were charged to appear before the court.