Burkinabe armed robbers arrested near Zebilla

Zebilla (U/E), July 23, GNA - Three Burkina Faso nationals who attacked and took away several millions of cedis at gunpoint from passengers on two vehicles along the Bolgatanga-Bawku highway near Zebilla in the Bawku West District have been arrested.

Issifu Diallo, 30, Mahamadu Issah, 29, and Mahamadu Diallo, 28, are also being sought for by the Togolese security for a similar crime they committed along the Ghana-Togo border.

Two members of the gang, however, managed to escape arrest by the police.

Briefing the Ghana News Agency, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Henry Bacho, Bawku West District Police Commander, said on June 27 the suspects who were travelling on a bus from Kumasi to Bawku asked the driver to stop when they reached the Tilli forest reserve at about 2100 hours under the pretext of attending to nature's call.

He said as soon as the bus came to a halt, the suspects pulled out pistols and ordered the passengers to surrender their monies.

Mr Bacho said the second bus from Bolgatanga to Bawku, stopped because the driver thought the Bawku-bound bus needed help. The robbers pounced on the passengers and collected their monies and fled into the dark forest.

Mr Bacho said the police went to the scene when a report was made and searched for the robbers, which proved futile.

Some of the passengers spotted the three suspects later in Bawku, raised an alarm and they were arrested.

A search on them revealed two locally manufactured pistols believed to be those used in the operation. 23 Jul 04