Tema Court jails two Police Officers 13 years for narcotics trafficking

A Tema Circuit Court has sentenced two police officers to a total of 13 years in prison for unlawful possession and conspiracy to traffic narcotic drugs.

The court, presided over by Her Ladyship Aleanor Kakra Barnes Botchway, convicted Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Nasiru Amadu and Corporal Emmanuel Mintah after nearly four years of criminal proceedings.

According to the prosecution, led by ASP Ernest Kuofie, the case began in 2023 after an officer at the Afienya District Police Command reported suspicious behaviour involving the two accused officers. At the time, Amadu, 48, served as second-in-command at the Sakumono District Police Headquarters, while Mintah, 43, worked under him as a service driver.

On November 19, 2023, police officers on snap-check duty received intelligence that a Nissan Navara with registration number GP 727 was transporting narcotics from Ho to Accra. At about 7:15 p.m., the vehicle, driven by the accused officers, arrived at the checkpoint and was intercepted.

A search uncovered eight sacks containing 541 compressed parcels of substances suspected to be narcotics.

Further investigations revealed that Mintah had a relative, popularly known as “Oluman”, a resident of Ashaiman Tulaku and a known narcotics dealer. On the day of the incident, “Oluman” contracted Mintah to transport Indian hemp from Peki Tsibu in the Volta Region to Tulaku. Mintah then contacted Amadu, who also communicated with “Oluman” to finalise the deal.

The two officers subsequently drove vehicle GP 727 from Sakumono to a forest near Peki Tsibu, where the drugs were transferred to their vehicle from a Benz bus. They were arrested on their return trip to Accra. Investigators later established that this was the second time the officers had undertaken such a mission.

The Forensic Crime Laboratory later confirmed that the seized substances were narcotics.

The court ruled that the officers unlawfully possessed narcotics for trafficking, contrary to Section 23(1) of the Criminal Offences Act, 1960, and Section 37(2)(b) of the Narcotic Control Commission Act, 2020 (Act 1019).

ASP Amadu was sentenced to 10 years in prison, while Corporal Mintah received a five-year sentence, both to run concurrently. The court additionally imposed a fine of 10,000 penalty units (GH¢120,000) on each officer, or in default, a further three years’ imprisonment.

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