Police round up suspects in search of Kwabenya gunmen, escapees

A number of suspects have been arrested in connection with the killing of Inspector Emmanuel Ashilevi and the breaking of a cell at the Kwabenya Police Station in Accra at dawn last Sunday.

All divisional commands under the Accra Regional Police Command simultaneously embarked on an unannounced operation at suspected criminal dens in their jurisdictions to arrest the suspects.

When contacted, the Public Relations Officer of the Accra Regional Police Command, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Mrs Effia Tenge, said the police had commenced the screening of the suspects arrested during the swoop.

She explained that the swoop was part of normal police operational strategies used to fish out criminals and the recent exercise was not mainly for the suspects connected to the Kwabenya Police Station cell break but to go after criminals.

“The search for the escapees continues unabated and credible information from the public that can lead to their arrest is welcome,” she said.

The escape

At dawn last Sunday, about six gunmen facilitated the escape of seven suspects in the custody of the Kwabenya Police in Accra.

In the process of freeing the inmates, the gunmen shot the policeman on duty at the police station, Inspector Ashilevi, when he tried to stop the jail break.

Mr Ashilevi died a few hours later at the 37 Military Hospital in Accra while receiving treatment.

The seven inmates, including a Nigerian and six Ghanaians, escaped and are currently on the run.

They are Dickson Ofori, Chubuzor Chubuzor, Edem Rockson, Emmanuel Kotey, Prince Osei, Kofi Darko and Atta Kwadwo, aged between 20 and 34 years.

Information gathered from police sources indicate that seven other inmates who did not escape during the jail break have since been transferred to the Madina Police Station.

The Kwabenya District Police Headquarters has since been cordoned off as investigations continue into the mater.

Security

Speaking to the media, the Director-General of the Public Affairs Department of the Ghana Police Service, Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Mr David Eklu, said the Police Administration would intensify security measures at all police stations throughout the country.

The Minister of Information, Mr Mustapha Abdul-Hamid, sympathised with the family of the deceased police officer and assured the public that the security agencies would work to ensure the safety of the citizenry.

Family

A younger brother of the deceased police officer, who gave his name only as William, said the family was shocked by Ashilevi’s demise.

“We are all shocked and I will not believe my brother is dead until I see his body. He was our breadwinner, mentor and stunning Christian, a Seventh-Day Adventist,” he said.

William, who could not control his tears, said the family had lost a great personality and that had affected them greatly. 

On behalf of the family, he appealed to the government and the Ghana Police Service to arrest Ashilevi’s killers and punish them severely to deter others from taking innocent souls who had sacrificed their lives for the state.

Later, the Accra Regional Police Command debunked information making the rounds on social media that six of the suspects who absconded from lawful custody at the Kwabenya Police Station had surrendered themselves to the Madina Police.

In a press release, it said it suspected that the false information was intended to divert the attention of the police from the ongoing pursuit of the escapees and those who facilitated their escape.

The police cautioned the public against the spreading of unverified information through social media and urged recipients of such information to disregard it.