3 toll booth operators arraigned in court for stealing

Three toll booth operators have been arrested and arraigned before an Accra High court for stealing.

They are accused of taking tolls from motorists without issuing receipts.

Their arrest and subsequent prosecution are part of a special surveillance by the special operations unit at the Presidency.

Starr FM’s Wilberforce Asare, who was in court Monday, reported that some supervisors of the toll booth operators have questioned the arrest and prosecution of the three.

A supervisor who spoke to STARR NEWS on condition of anonymity said the toll booth operators cannot be blamed for the decision by some drivers not to accept receipts.

“If you give someone a ticket and the driver on his way throws the ticket away, then the national security would say the person was not given a ticket; that is where I have a problem…and that is what happened with the case in question,” the Supervisor said.

But Presidential staffer, Dr. Clement Apaak has dismissed the defense of the toll booth supervisors. He told STARR NEWS Monday that drivers who also fail to pay the right toll would soon be prosecuted.

“It is not only the ticket attendants that we are interested in bringing to book, the surveillance is continuing and very soon…both ticket attendants and the driver would be standing trial for denying the state the much needed revenue,” Apaak told Kwaku Obeng Adjei on the Starr Midday News.

“We are using this to warn both ticket sellers and drivers that the surveillance is now going to extend to include regular checks and we are not only going to be punishing tickets sellers…but drivers would now also have to show their ticket.”

Apaak added that government is committed to sustaining the operation and would ensure that it is extended to other parts of the country.