How 2 government officials narrowly escaped death by armed robbers
Two government officials in the Bono Region narrowly escaped death, when they were unexpectedly caught up in a robbery attack on the Fetentaa stretch of the Berekum-Drobo highway in the region.
The duo, Mr Andrews Bediako, the Jaman South Municipal Chief Executive and Mr Solomon Owusu, the Jaman North District Chief Executive, were returning from a meeting in Sunyani to their various districts when they encountered a group of armed robbers.
The terrifying incident happened on Tuesday, July 16, 2024, between 4:30 pm and 5:00 pm.
According to Mr. Bediako, the fully armed robbers, about five in number, had targeted market women and traders who were returning from Drobo and Sampa to Berekum and Sunyani at the Fetentaa portion of the stretch, near the Fetentaa Refugee camp in the Berekum West District.
“They just appeared from the shoulder of the stretch, fired gunshots sporadically and signalling us to stop. They even hit and broke my windscreen with lumber, however, we managed to speed off from the terrible scene,” he said.
Mr. Bediako added that in the process of the attack, his colleague DCE’s vehicle engine broke down but thankfully, they were all able to escape unhurt.
“We quickly rang the police and signalled all the vehicles which were coming from the opposite directions. Sensing danger, the robbers fled into the bush,” he noted in an interview with the GNA.
This incident follows the arrest of three suspects by the Bono Regional Police Command, linked to an armed robbery attack that claimed the life of a student of the University of Energy and Natural Resources (UENR).
On April 16, 2024, a gang of robbers attacked a group of UENR students near Boffourkrom in the Sunyani West Municipality when they were returning from a field trip to the Bui Power Authority.
The robbers also shot and killed one of the students, identified as Abdul Aziz Issah, while six others sustained minor injuries in the process.
The police arrested one suspect right after the robbery attack.
According to a police source, following weeks of police intelligence and investigations, the three were arrested and are currently in detention.
The police also retrieved several mobile phones and other valuables from the suspects who had been arrested in different hideouts.